Magic
by Swift Sketch - Jadazzle
Summary: There is, and always will be, an equal reaction to an action, be it positive or negative. And now, with Equestria on the brink of war for the first time in one thousand years with a feared enemy that existed only in myth, can John stand strong against the reactions of his actions, and do what needs to be done for the good of Equestria? Part Two of Three. OCs Open.
1. Prologue Part 1

_**Hey! You! Yes, you! Welcome back! To those of you new around here, 'sup? This is the sequel to my first ever fanfic, "The Tale Of A Shaded Comet". If you are new here, and haven't read it before, it would be wise to read it. You may find this slightly confusing if you don't. Try to ignore the shoddyness of the first few chapters though.**_

_**I could, would and probably should start by telling you about John, or Shaded Comet, but I can't be bothered. That's for you to read. So, instead, I'll kick off the first chapter of Magic. **_

**Magic, Chapter I, Unwanted Memories Part 1**

The sun was warm, the day pleasant and carefree. Not a single cloud was in the sky, leaving a beautiful light blue shade for everypony to admire. It was such a shame that they weren't actually admiring it. Many a pony were lolling about mirthlessly in the sun's rays, gazing blankly at the sights around them and tilting their heads in curiousity. The crystal palace, long a subject of terror and hopelessness, had been restored to its former glory and splendour, shining brilliantly in the daylight. Nothing could ever hope to defeat the unique and dazzling structure; the crystalline towers reaching up to the bottom of the heavens themselves casted a pleasant glow across the kingdom that could never be matched through artificial means. And yet, something was missing.

This was all too apparent to one such pony idily lazing about outside the hospital, studying the daily routines of his fellow citizens from a bench. As far as he could remember, he had been living here. The again, he couldn't recall much anyway, as if an entire lifetime had been wiped off the slate. The last thing he could remember was waking up in a hospital bed with no idea who he was, where he was or what he was. Two of those questions had been answered with time already.

He half-heartedly flicked his tail, which was two tones of blue; a calming baby blue and a shockingly bright azure. It was slightly ragged in places, and curled into thick spikes near the ends. Much like his mane, which was flicked carefully to the side to keep it out of his eyes. He blinked, hiding his deeply crimson eyes from view for a split second, before sighing and looking over his shoulder. As he shifted, he felt his stomach slide over the cool crystal underneath him, making him shiver slightly.

On his back were a pair of wings, an addition that the other ponies here most certainly did not have. Each individual feather was a dark grey, the same shade as the occasional storm cloud he saw on the horizon. Past the wings, which he flapped experimentally, was an intriguing and grimace-inducing patch of lighter grey that spanned the distance between his left flank and just under his ribcage, as if all the skin there had been ripped off. Unfortunately, from what the pony had been told, he didn't have a marking that should be on both sides of his flank, something that the hospital staff, dull and as lifeless as they were, called a "cutie mark".

That was probably due to having the skin torn off on the left, but what about the right? Did he just not have one, or did he have one before?

He shook his head, turning back to look at the motionless forms of the so called crystal ponies. How were they crystal? They more or less all had the same coat colour as him, but with duller manes and tails. Curious.

A soft breeze wafted his direction, cold yet refreshing. As he felt the bracing air against his skin, he let his thoughts wander. Or rather, change. Since he had awoken, every time he tried to think of one thing, he was slowly led on to another thing. He thought it comparable to a stream, twisting and turning slowly until it changed direction, splitting off into smaller branches until it reached a lake. If that was the case, he was slowly floating along the start of the stream on a wooden raft, peacefully admiring the scenery. It was only a matter of time until he reached a turn, and then eventually, the lake itself.

That is, presuming a lake is comparable to knowledge. A lake of knowledge perhaps?

"Excuse me? Mister?" The pony heard a voice from behind, tired but young. He turned to face the speaker, a young mare with a grey-purple mane and violet eyes. She was standing at an angle to him, so he could see her cutie mark. It was a indigo-ish diamond, giving him no clues whatsoever. According to the monotoned hospital staff, a cutie mark represents a pony's special talent. Therefore, having no cutie mark meant no talent. That was depressing to discover.

"How can I help you?" He replied in an equally tired voice. It wasn't physical fatigue; it was boredom. As far as he could tell, he had been here for around a week, and had done nothing except sleep, eat and watch the empty sky. He wanted something to do. His cutie mark wasn't going to be in sleeping, that was for sure.

"Do you mind if I join you?" She motioned with a hoof towards the bench, her facial expression staying remotely neutral. He shook his head politely, and shuffled across to make some space for her. She nodded a thanks, her neck stiff, and sat down, folding her forelegs underneath her. The stallion breathed in deeply, sniffing the afternoon air and placing his head against the tops of his forelegs. The air smelt different today. Almost...stale.

_Stale?_

The stallion's head popped up, scowling at the sky in confusion. As he watched, the mare beside him lowered her head, drooping in her seat. He raised an eyebrow, turning his gaze around so that it faced the gateway into the kingdom in the distance. The thin crystal spires that burst from the ground still shone brilliantly, and the three gems floating between the two were still reflecting the sunlight. beyond the gateway was a vast array of green rolling hills and lush fields of grass. The countryside. So why was the air stale?

It made no sense to the pony, and as such, sparked his curiousity. Doing something aside from the basic functions of a pony would be nice, he reasoned, and he slowly tried to pry himself off of the bench. His body refused to budge, even after a few attempts, so he gave up. Even thinking about it would be a change. Something's better than nothing, right?

Lowering his head, he closed his eyes, and cleared his mind of errant strings of thought.

_We're in the countryside. Therefore, if the air is stale, something is up. Something's going on. The air can't be stale here, so we're either in a pony maintained environment, or..._

The stallion snorted, his wings twitching in amusement.

_Or I'm just imagining it. Boredom is a wonderful thing._

He raised his head again, observing the oscillating shards and the colours they gave off as they sparkled. He had no idea how long he sat, blankly staring off into space. He was surprised that he didn't forget how to breathe; he was that bored. A flash of movement in the corner of his eye caught his attention, and his eyes snapped round. It was a white...unicorn...stallion? A blue two-tone mane similar to his own?

_Huh. That's interesting._

The stallion turned to look at him, or rather, the hospital, as he continued running into the distance. As he faced him, the pegasus got a clear view of the unicorn. Purple eyes, muscled build and a shield for a cutie mark?

_Why does he look so...familiar?_

A twinge in the back of his skull warned the pegasus that he was overexerting himself by thinking, and he turned away. It remained, however, and the grey stallion used a wing to massage the back of his head. It was like an extra pair of hooves, but with smaller legs on the end. If that made any sense whatsoever. but what fun is there in making sense when all you do is eat and sleep? It made it extremely easy to hold things though; all he needed to do was curl it around whatever object it was. It wasn't useful for holding a drink though. The cup just slipped and fell, and anyway, he couldn't bend his neck back far enough to reach the straw. Blinking twice, the stallion continued to rub his head as he sagged in his seat, trying to ignore the potent headache he know had.

_Stupid stale air._

His eyelids fluttered, feeling heavier with each passing second. The breeze, by now, had increased slightly, and had decided to lower itself in temperature. It was now ice cold, leaving him with chills when it passed over. The mare beside him had dropped off to sleep, and was snoring quietly and twitching every few seconds, one of her back legs kicking out spasmodically now and then. Deciding to join her, the stallion let his head droop, returning his wing to his side with a flick of a muscle.

**/.../**

After an unmeasurable length of time, the stallion heard the clopping of hooves against the crystal floor in the distance, and he flicked his ear in annoyance. Why was it the moment he decided to get to sleep that they suddenly chose to start moving? Through his eyelids he could see the light shing down directly on him, so he flicked his mane. The curled fringe ended up covering his eyes, and he sighed in relief. No more blasted sun.

_Who was that unicorn? I feel like I know him._

Stifling a yawn with a hoof, he laid his head back down against his hooves, turning his head so it was more comfortable. As he tried to fall back into the welcoming clutches of sleep, he couldn't help but listen to the hoofsteps. As he concentrated, he began to be able to hear even smaller details. For instance, the was a lot more than one set of hooves walking. From here, he could make out maybe four or five, possibly more. Unsure, the head was brought back up with an audible groan, the fringe flopping over his red eyes as he swiveled around to see if he could spy whoever was walking.

Not seeing anypony, he cracked his neck. A pop echoed off the empty streets, and he smiled as the stiffness in his neck disappeared. As soon as he had done this, he felt his nostrils twitch. He sniffed. He sneezed violently, his head forced backwards with the sudden action. His eyes were clenched closed as his speed backwards continued, his body following his head due to the two being connected.

The next thing he knew, he was on the crystal floor behind the bench curled up into a ball, and had one hoof over his quivering nose. Eyes rolling in a derped-up fashion, he sat up, feeling the blood rush to his head. With an exhausted exhale, he fell backwards onto the glass-like ground, throwing his forehooves out to his sides.

"It's gorgeous! Absolutely gorgeous!"

He shot up immediately, wings flapping erratically as he landed on all four hooves. He _knew _that voice. He was sure of it. But who did it belong to? It was female, definitely. It had a bit of an upper-class ring to it, the pronounciation had emotion, precision and it sounded close.

Wait, close!?

He glanced around, his headache returning as his eyes scanned the surrounding area, wary yet hopeful. The voice had stirred something within him, and he was determined to find out why.

"Focus, Rarity." Another voice, different but oddly cordial. "We're here to help Twilight, not admire the scenery."

_Twilight? Rarity!?_

Who in the name of all things _hay _was here? He began to trot away from the bench, peering round the street and frowning when he saw nopony. Nopony whatsoever. Arriving at a corner, specifically the one that lead to the palace, he poked his head around.

"Eh, I don't see what the big deal is. Just looks like another old castle to me."

The stallion blinked, slumping down slightly before struggling to push himself back up. His head was pounding, thumping, fighting to break the inside of his skull. He could hear his own heart beating furiously against his ribcage. Because, just underneath the spire, in the little alcove beneath the palace, were six ponies.

A yellow pegasus with a pink mane and tail, delicately styled into a heart shape. A pink earth pony with an even pinker mane, poofy and bouncy. A white unicorn with a deep purple mane, stylishly fashioned into curls. An orange earth pony with a stetson, with a loosely tied-at-the-end blonde mane and tail. A purple unicorn with a straight darker purple mane that had highlights of pink and purple.

His breath caught in his throat as he saw the last pony.

_"I could never hate the mare I love, Dashie."_

_Dashie?_

The stallion shook his head frantically, desperate to clear his head.After a few moments, the six disappeared inside, and he could finally breath. Panting in fear, confusion and something else he couldn't quite place a hoof on, he collapsed where he was standing, mentally drained and dead to the physical world.

"What was that? Who are they!?" He hissed between sucks of air, glowering at the doorway that the six entered. Around him, the air got colder, his breath icing as soon as it left his body, forming a fine, sparkling mist in front of him that hung like a veil in the silence that ensued. Several deep beaths later, he found himself holding a hoof to his head and a hoof to his chest, lying flat on his back. Chest heaving, he rolled over onto his front, and hugged himself, curling up.

If there was anypony around to see, they would have noticed that the stallion on the floor was shaking without control, the crystal around him frozen over with a thin layer of frost. All of a sudden, the frost melted, leaving a miniscule puddle in the outline of a pony. The pony, calm and collected after a few moments, shook himself off, tapping a hoof to the side of his head in an effort to keep himself focused.

"I need to sit down... and think." He murmured to himself, frowning at the doorway into the castle. Swaying slightly from side to side, he began to step back to the bench, feeling a little light headed, and a bit sick. As he lurched precariously, he noticed that the mare had gone.

_What in the name of all things Equestrian is going on? Is this what an answer feels like?_

He fumbled to get into a position to sit down on the bench, turning his gaze skywards as he lowered himself. Above him, in the corner of his vision, he could see something sparkling at the top of the crystal spire, reflecting of the mirrored edges of the palace as his eyes followed the contours and edges all the way to the ground. As his belly made contact with the bench, he vaguely remembered something.

**/br/**

It was... yesterday. He was in the exact same position as he was now, sitting on the exact same bench. The sky was the same shade of blue, but... flickering. Shifting colours, from a peaceful baby blue to a stark grey. It happened so quickly that even he doubted that it happened, but he was sure. A sound to his right. Slowly, he turned his head to meet approaching hoofsteps. It was a pink mare, one with a horn and a pair of wings. An alicorn...

As she made her way past, he lowered his head in respect and admiration, and she turned back to face him.

"Please, don't bow."

He raised his eyes to look at her. A lovingly crafted three-tone mane swayed slightly in the wind, accompanied by a smile that could melt the thickest ice. Her horn was aglow with a small light, but it was faint. She was, as noticed, pink. Not a bright pink however, but a warm and welcoming pink. Her eyes were much the same, but a vibrant purple.

The alicorn crouched down slightly, probably to get on his level so he didn't have to look up.

"I'm Princess Cadence. I was sent here to help."

He cocked an eyebrow, stretching out slightly.

"Help? Why would we need help?" He replied, his volume low and tone cautious, yet questioning.

Cadence glanced behind her, before taking a seat next to him. Her eyes gazed into his own with curiousity.

"You've been gone a thousand years. So much has changed in that time. Sombra is not gone, but he isn't here."

"Sombra?"

"You don't remember?" She asked, suddenly quiet.

"I don't remember much. I don't even know my own name." He said with a pang of sadness, shaking his head slightly to actuate his point.

Out of nowhere he felt something rubbing against his neck. It was Cadence, gently nuzzling him. Was she trying to comfort him? The action was sincere, full of unhidden emotion. She felt sympathy for him.

_Sympathy?_

"I am so sorry. I didn't realise..." She apologised, lowering her head in... shame? It may not have been, but there wasn't much else that she could have possibly felt. She felt bad for them, and being a Princess, was truly sorry that she couldn't do anything.

"Hey. It's not a problem. You didn't know." He returned, smiling soberly.

"You remind me of somepony I was told about." She suddenly narrowed her eyes at him. "But he's unfortunately not with us any more." She finished, looking away and up. He followed her eyes to the balcony connected to the palace.

"You're staying in the palace?" He inquired, tilting his head to the side.

She nodded wordlessly, still staring up at the balcony. After a few moments, she sighed, and looked back down.

"I was sent here by my aunt Celestia," She started speaking, turning to face him again. "To help you. To protect you. You've been gone for a thousand years. The ponies here were cursed by Sombra and ultimately disappeared with the city. You were gone."

"Out of the blue, the Crystal Empire returned, just a few days ago. I'm here with my husband, Shining Armour..."

"Shining Armour? He sounds familiar..." The stallion whispered to himself. Cadence must have heard him; she fixed him with a weird look, watching him carefully out of the corner of her eyes, studying every minute move he made for a few seconds.

It was uncomfortable.

"...And soon, my sister-in-law and her friends will be here to help. Is there anything you remember that we can do to make you feel safe?"

"Why do you ask?"

"The Crystal Empire isn't the only thing that returned." She said cryptically, before raising herself off her haunches and standing up. He grimaced, and nodded to her.

"I wish you the best, Princess Cadence."

"You too. I hope you remember something soon."

**/br/**

He awoke in a fit of shivers. Twisting around, he saw that he had been sweating, and a noticable sheen of it was on his coat. With a groan, he lowered his head again, going back to thinking. Daintily placing his chin on his hooves as he stretched out, he breathed in deeply and sniffed the air once more.

Stale.

With a huff, he flipped himself over, tucking his wings into his sides. The sunlight above, as if through divine intervention, shone at just the right angle to make him sparkle, faint beams of light refracted off him shooting back out, giving him a lightly glowing appearance. Not bothering to move out of the way; it was pleasant, he yawned and cast his eyes back out at the streets.

_Okay. So, that was a memory...? From yesterday? Why can't I remember?_

_I suppose, if that's the case, that I know Princess Cadence. She mentioned a Celestia. Why does she sound like I know her?_

_WHY DOES IT FEEL LIKE I KNOW EVERYPONY?!_ He screamed out in his thoughts, casting them out far and wide, expelling them from his brain.

"Confound these ponies. They're driving me crazy!" He muttered, sitting back up and throwing himself against the back of the bench, hiding his wings from view. Not that it really mattered anyway; there was an alicorn somewhere inside the palace. With _them_.

Hold it. Rewind. Sister-in-law? That must be one of those, making them royalty. But which pony was it? He shut his eyes, unaware of the fact that his goof was rubbing sub-consciously against his left flank, and tried to think. To remember.

As he listened to his inner mechanics, he became aware of the quiet, sincere echoes inside his skull. He sensed the vibrations of a voice, and was beginning to make out a picture in his mind's eye, watching. Darkness tinged and gathered around the edges of his vision. The voices were echoed and distorted, twisted and demonic; remnants of the shattered memories of a dead pony. Nothing more, nothing less. Somepony not him. His lips moved of their own accord, mirroring the movements of those he saw, hissing out the sounds made. Each was drawn out, becoming quieter near the end.

_"He will pay..."_

_"Go. I'll hold them off..."_

_"I'm your worst nightmare..."_

_"Why...is this...happening to me...!?"_

He gasped, watching what could potentially be his life flash before his eyes in a maelstrom of colour and sound, accompainied by the sounds of hoofsteps from nearby.

He pulled himself out of his brain, gulping in air and massaging his temples furiously. As he did, he couldn't shake the feeling of horror at watching his life go past. It was both a blessing and a curse to see. Imagine his emotions; fear, horror, anger, as a forest fire. Destructive, corrupting and tainted. Then imagine an equally destructive thunderstorm that puts out the fire. Yes, it stops the fire, but it replaces it with things just as bad; jealousy, sadness and regret just to name a few. He heard the waves of emotion crashing against his thoughts, words barely audible through the chaos.

_"John!"_

It stopped. There was no warning, no slowing down. It just stopped. Blinking a few times, he rolled his shoulders, flexing his wings and breathed in deeply.

"John?" He whispered, placing his hooves in front of him as he straightened out on the bench. "I have a name... I... remember..." He grinned from ear to ear like an idiot, only just restraining himself enough to not whoop and jump about in glee. "I remember! I'm alive!" He laughed, rich and deep, the sound vibrating in his throat.

"Twilight, Pinkie, Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy and-" He paused, ears drooping down as he recalled what he had done. "Dashie... Hope..." He flicked his tail to the side in sadness, sighing.

_They all think I'm dead. They've moved on with their lives. I can't intrude now. It's too late._

_No. I'm dead, and this is just a punishment. I did enough crap in one lifetime to be punished in seven. Or am I alive?_

John pursed his lips, lowering his head back down. With a snort, he settled on the latter.

_And they're here in the Crystal Empire. Ponyfeathers. Luna, please, keep them the hell away from me. They'll do their job and go. I don't need to be found. Just let them walk past, unaware. Please._

He stared at the crystal surface underneath, looking deeply into his own reflection.

_As least my mane's different. They wont recognise me if they walk past. Hopefully._

He moved his head closer to the shiny rock, studying his eyes. They had completely shifted in colour from one end of the spectrum to the other. Oh well, it was just another thing that camoflagued him.

"Uhm... Excuse me... Mister...?" A soft voice from above his head spoke, feminine and quiet. Almost shy...

_Oh no._

Of all six ponies, it just had to be her. Even Rainbow Dash would be preferable to her.

"Can I help you?" John refused to raise his head, keeping his eyes firmly away from the knowing gaze of the meek yellow pegasus. As soon as he uttered his responce, there was a little squeek from her, followed by an even quieter answer.

"I was... wondering if you could help me... If that's all right with you..."

Some ponies never change.

"That depends on what you need help with."

Another squeek. The urge to facehoof rose, and John cursed his rotten luck. His breathing was strangely calm, surprising him.

"Uhm...would you know anything about...defending the Empire?" She made that adorable _squee _sound that he loathed and loved equally. It broke any and all barriers he had, and he almost raised his head. Urging himself to keep down, he stared with determination at the mirrored surface, met with his own steely eyes.

"Why don't you try the library?"

"Oh! Good idea! Thank you...erm..."

She wanted his name? John quickly racked his brains for an acceptable excuse of a name, flicking his tail in annoyance. When it landed, it covered his flank slightly, hiding the blankness there. After a few moments of silent conversation with himself, scanning through talents that he had and particular traits and dismissing some, he came up with a name to use instead of Shaded Comet or John. Instinctively, without any control, he lifted his head as he said it. His eyes were met with Fluttershy's, and fortunately, there was no spark of recognation.

"Stormy Skies. And you?"

"Err...I'm Fluttershy..." She trailed off, voice barely louder than a mouse scampering in the fields, or a slight wind. Just as he remembered. She cast her eyes down, hiding behind her pink, half-heart shaped mane.

**/br/**

Fluttershy, not one to normally be suspicious of a pony, was intrigued by the behaviour of Stormy Skies. He had kept his head down, avoiding her eyes to begin with. Earlier, she had seen him out of the corner of her eye, watching her and her friends from around a corner. She couldn't help but feel a bit wary of this pony.

Even the way he was positioned on the bench was off. He was, whether he realised it or not, covering his flank with his tail, and had his back strangely parallel to the backrest of the bench. His tail, and mane when she took note of it, were scarily familiar. It reminded her of John's mane, but Skies' was darker, more greyed, just like the other crystal ponies she had seen. The only thing that seperated him from them was his shockingly vibrant crimson irises; something the crystal ponies definitely didn't have.

After all, a red that deep was unnatural. It normally meant one of two things. One, he was actually a unicorn: it was one in a Celestia-knows-how-much chance of a unicorn having red eyes; making him an extreme rarity amongst ponies. According to Twilight, only unicorns could have pure red eyes like his. She had heard rumours of Vinyl Scratch's eyes being red, but the off-white DJ never took off her distinctive sunglasses. The other, if she recalled Twilight's explanation after the _incident_, meant that Stormy had a high concentration of Chaos magic inside of him.

But, as he was a crystal pony, he had been gone for a thousand years. How could he have been corrupted in the millenium that he didn't exist? Who was that pony?

Thoroughly confused and suspecting of trickery, Fluttershy held her tongue with practiced ease. For now.

**/br/**

Fluttershy had been studying him with a mysteriously inquisitive expression, hiding behind her mane and frowning down at him as if she had noticed something out of place. If he were wearing any, John would be quaking in his boots. Fluttershy was easy to mislead, but not easy to fool for an extended period of time. If there was anything to be noticed, she would know about it.

It's always the silent ones.

Repressing a sigh, John blinked at her, thinking of something to say to break the uneasy mutual silence and failing. As such, he opted to sit there and stare blankly at her until she went away and hopefully forgot about him. But, alas, fate begged to differ.

The quick pitter-patter of hooves behind him alerted John to the presence of another pony. Not twisting around, afraid that Fluttershy would see his not so cleverly hidden wings, he instead gazed out of the corner of his eyes. He was greeted with the sight of one of the monotonous doctors from the hospital. No doubt out her to check on him, at the worst possible time.

"Sir? Are you feeling better? I see you're holding a conversation, so that's progress." He droned, eyes unfocused and cloudy.

John nodded uneasily. "Yes. This is Fluttershy. She's visiting from Ponyville."

The crack of eyes moving at phenomenal speeds was almost imaginable as John flinched, the horror of the situation hitting him as he realised what he had said without thinking. Fluttershy's pair turned steely, ice cold circles boring into him, freezing him in place in trepidation. Why!? In the names of Celestia and Luna, why in Equestria compelled him to blurt out something he wasn't supposed to know? The doctor's pair was inquiring, but he held his silence, seemingly amused by the canary yellow pegasus' reaction.

"What did you say?" She asked, her meekness and shyness forgotten as her voice went neutral, void of all emotions.

John gulped, unable to tear himself away from the now slowly approaching pegasus. Deep down inside him, he felt something stir, a chuckle building in his throat. It came out as an uncomfortable choking sound, feeling as if he was shrinking under her eyes.

"Nothing." He quickly replied, formulating a plan.

"I see she has wings as well..." The doctor mindlessly began, unaware of the tension building.

"As well?" She repeated, eyes flashing from the doctor back to John. Her lips curled in slightly, giving her a barely noticable snarl that would never be on her face normally. The last time she had that look, she punched him; becoming a complete toss up of who she was, warped and twisted by hate.

_"...But Anti-Magi corrupted him...When Magi or Anti-Magi is transferred between objects, the reciever will always undergo a change..."_

He shook his head, the distant memory taking him out of reality for a second. As he locked eyes with Fluttershy, he noticed a slight change in her appearance: she was greyed. The doctor was nowhere to be seen, and Fluttershy had been changed.

"Anti-Magi corrupts... reciever undergoes a change..." He whispered, a plan beginning to take form in his mind. Fluttershy, for now, was dubbed as "Flutterrage" whilst she was like this, so he had a name for future reference.

_This is why, out of all the possible methods, I killed Discord like I did._

_Killed?_

John, all of a sudden, was completely overwhelmed by the thought, delving deeply into what he knew in an effort to reassure himself, but failing miserably.

_When something dies, it releases energy when it is consumed. The high amount of Anti-Magi in Discord, upon death, so have practically overflowed from his body. Discord's body IS Anti-Magi, therefore meaning that when he died, he was essentially released in the form of Anti-Magi. Magi, and probably Anti-Magi, has a tendency to be absorbed by the nearest living thing able to host it, such as crops, animals and even ponies._

_Even ponies._

He gulped, making a strangled sound as he noticed how Flutterrage was staring at him.

_That explains why there was no body. So, I now host a god-level amount of Anti-Magi inside of me, and because I have so much, it's leaking out into the air, thus flipping nearby ponies' personalities._

His eyes flicked between Fluttershy and the sky.

_Well, bollocks. If I get away now, hopefully she wouldn't have had enough time to absorb enough to completely turn her. This is exactly why I shouldn't be here._

"I hate this bucking world." John uttered, before launching himself into the air from the bench, leaving a startled yellow pegasus behind.

**Sorry if it's a bit sketchy, I'm getting back into writing.**

**Alright, you've made it this far without leaving the page, so I have a few things to say.**

**If you enjoyed this chapter, please, leave me a review on what you enjoyed, what could be improved or any questions. I'm going to try and be more social with people. Even complaints and cold-hearted critisms are allowed. **

**OC spots are open, but priority goes to those from The Tale Of A Shaded Comet. If you want to submit an OC, go to my profile and use the OC submission sheet. If you are here from The Tale Of A Shaded Comet, all living OCs will make another appearance sometime.**

**Depending on whether there are enough, I'll start answering questions and replying to reviews before a chapter begins. So feel free to ask anything, anything at all.**

**Okie dokie lokie! Thank you for reading the first chapter of "Magic", the unanticipated sequel to "The Tale Of A Shaded Comet". Each chapter will be longer or similar in length to this one, but you'll have to wait longer.**

**See ya'll next time,**

**Daz.**


	2. Prologue Part 2

_**A quick message: **_

_**I know I've literally only just restarted the series, but I have bad news. It is highly likely, not certain, that chapters will either be shorter in length, or that you kind people will have to wait longer for each. I have the beginning of my GSCE preparation coming up, and I need to buckle down. "Magic" won't be put on hold, hell, I may not even need to slow it down providing I have enough free time, but be aware that I need to revise. Thanks for the support, guys, it means a lot to me.**_

**Song choice: Titanium by David Guetta ft Sia, especially for the chase.**

**Magic, Chapter 2, Unwanted Memories Part 2**

Knowing full well that being in the air would be the easiest way to be spotted, John hastily began his retreat towards the edge of the city, skimming close to the rooftops. As he sped over the houses, he lowered himself down so that his stomach was millimetres away from touching the tiled roofs. The rush of wind that battered his face due to his speed was nothing compared to the wave of choking emotion that held him in an icy grasp. Shockwaves of fear made him tremble from head to tail, throwing him slightly off balance as he nimbly dodged the occasional chimney jutting out of the top of houses. He was aware that he could still be spotted, but only from the air at this height. Above him, as he didn't dare to look, he was dimly aware of a faint roaring. It only served as reason to increase his speed, and he did so. As he dashed across the city, he felt an unexplainable burst of anger gnaw at him, and he wobbled as he tried to ignore it.

"Hey!"

John heard the exclamation from behind him, and he quickly peeked around to see who it came from. He was going too fast to actually find who had shouted; the buildings kept flashing in his vision. Was it the buildings? He didn't care. He gritted his teeth, and flapped harder, fatigue already sapping at his willpower.

_Wow, I'm really out of shape._

Pushing the thought aside, he continued his escape. To an onlooker, he was be a grey blur racing across the rooftops, unable to decipher or be recognised as a pony.

"Please, stop!"

Despite his initial reaction to turn around, he ignored his natural instincts and dove down, blasting over the heads of crystal ponies in the streets following their boring daily routines. He looked down, focusing on the thin doorway that fringed his vision. With a snort, his eyebrows slanted down and his crimson irises locked onto his target. The rush of air displaced by him rocketed through the streets, blowing some ponies off balance and throwing any unsecured item into the air. There were several monotoned insults thrown back at him, but he shrugged them off.

The air rushing past his eardrums obscured the sound, but he thought he could hear the unmistakable sound of hooves pounding against stone, and the faint flapping of wings behind him, somewhere to the left and up. With an agitated growl, he ducked down further, now flying at head height to try an throw off whoever was persuing him.

_As if it isn't obvious._

Rolling and spiralling to avoid hitting anypony, he watched as he came astonishingly close to hitting an out of place cart containing whatever it contained. He needed to get on the ground if he was to escape at this height.

Sneaking a peek behind him, he wasn't at all shocked to see five very familiar ponies following a similar path. Twilight was obviously pushing herself to try and keep up with him, beads of sweat already dripping from her brow. Pinkie had an expression of stoic determination etched onto her features, with a faint sheen of sweat on her brow. Applejack, as ever, was out in front, eyes glued to him and hooves battering the crystal underneath relentlessly. Her stetson, John noted, was perched precariously on her head, on the verge of dropping off due to the astonishingly fast gallop she was implementing.

With a grimace, he flew back up to give himself more room to use. The street was completely straight, with no objects or extensions to block his advance, so he gazed back again.

They weren't gaining on him, nor was he gaining. They were at a constant distance, now that the crystal ponies that he had flown over had retreated to the sides of the street and they had a clear path as well. He could see Rarity and Fluttershy now. They were bringing up the rear, but were still very close to the other three. Daring to look to his left, he was greeted with the unwanted sight of a cyan pegasus.

"Stop running!" She shouted at him, though it was muffled to the point of nothingness by the air resistance. Her rainbow trail was visible behind her, and her mane was pulled all the way back over her head; she was going that fast to keep up. Her eyes were filled with something, but it was negative. With a gulp, John's head snapped back in front, and he immediately squinted, water streaming from his eyes.

His wings were now beginning to give up on him, his flight muscles straining to keep him airborne, screaming in protest. With a grunt of pain, he dove down again, holding his wings out as he extended his legs. There was a thunk of pain as his hooves touched the ground, and he winced as he drew them back up to his chest, slowing down enough to stay ahead. As he did so, he heard a sudden absence of wings flapping, and he instinctively dropped his hooves. He stumbled at first, but quickly recovered and began sprinting.

_**Why are you running, pony?**_

The voice in his head told him, but it was not his own. It was deep, rung in his ears and undoubtably melodious. As he listened, he felt a rush of confusing anger, and he stumbled again, staggering off to the right. An influx of memories rushed into his head, enciting a snarl from the fleeing pegasus.

_Get out of my head!_

He blinked to clear the water from his eyes, and judged the distance he still had to run. It wasn't that far; he could esily see the gateway from here. It was, however, still a feat he doubted was within his capacities to perform.

There was a sudden whistling from above, and he galloped even faster, knowing exactly what that sound meant. His legs strained to maintain the speed, but he willed himself forward. Soon enough, the crystal slowly began to fade out into grass, the colour a welcome changed to icy blues and whites. The ground was softer, but it made his muscles go slack momentarily, and he came extremely close to falling over and onto his face. Regardless, he kept going.

"Why must you follow me?!" He shouted into the wind, leaving him with a lack of breath.

"We just want to talk!" Was the return from Twilight, panting ringing in his ears.

"Well, I don't wa-Urk!"

The next thing he knew, he was on the grass, wings struggling above him. He could feel each individual blade poking into the skin on his underside, but it was soft. He also felt hooves pushing the small of his back down, and whoever they belonged to was ultimately stronger than he was, so he didn't waste any energy. His nostrils were full of the earthy odour, and John couldn't help but breath it in. His hooves stopped scrabbling at the ground, and dropped unceremoniously to his sides whilst his wings drooped, and folded back in as he sniffed.

John tasted something metallic in his mouth, and he swallowed, aware of the dryness in his throat.

"Got you! Why were you running?!" Dash hissed in his ear, making him shiver. He shook his head numbly, closing his mouth and biting down on his tongue.

_**Why do you refuse to talk? Are you afraid?**_

Hoofsteps behind him signalled the arrival of the other five mares, and he went rigid as he felt Rainbow's hooves dig harder into his back. Heavy, laboured breathing indicated that they were all out of breath, so John assumed that's why they remained silent.

He heard the roaring again, and he winced. His eyes were directed at the gateway, a mere few metres away, and he chastised himself mentally.

_Damn it all to the moon! So close!_

He closed his eyes in defiance as the fringe of Dash's hair appeared at the edge of his vision.

"Who are you? Are you a spy?!" She growled.

He refused to acknowledge her question.

"Dash... simmer down now. Ah think you knocked him out." Applejack warned, seemingly standing in front of him. Rainbow's hooves stopped applying pressure to his spine, and he resisted the urged to breathe out in relief.

"He...uhm...said his name was Stormy Skies..." Fluttershy muttered, somewhere off to his right.

The absence of Rainbow's hooves made him realise just how tired he was, but his brain refused to let him sleep.

"That doesn't explain why he's here." Twilight added, and he felt a hoof tap against ribs lightly.

John opened his left eye a fraction of an inch, and sure enough, the orange cowpony was blocking any route of escape. His wings had gone numb, but there was nopony above him. If his wings cooperated with him, he could go, and leave them to go back to their own lives.

_**Ah, you're afraid. I expected as much.**_

"Why does he exude a feeling of familiarity?" Rarity asked, to his left.

That meant that he was surrounded, and that meant no hope of staying silent. They would do something eventually to get him to speak, but until then, he would hold his tongue.

"Ah feel it too. Dash?" Applejack confirmed.

"Mm." Was the simple yet effective responce.

"Has anypony seen him before? Fluttershy?"

"I..ah...haven't. But he knows where we're from..." The meek yellow pegasus answered.

"That doesn't explain anything. Pinkie?"

"Nope!"

There was a heavy sigh, and he felt the cold touch of magic against his coat, slithering underneath him.

"Maybe if we see his face? Applejack, you may want to move." Twilight uttered.

_Yes!_

John heard Applejack move, and tensed his muscles, fighting against the magical hold. His hooves found purchase on the ground, moments before Twilight would have turned him over. He sped off, reaching out with a hoof towards the gateway. Straight away, he felt the magic pull him back, and he was thrown roughly to the ground, landing on his stomach again. There was quiet for a few moments, and he felt himself being dragged backwards onto the cold crystal ground.

"So he is awake!" Dash shouted, and he felt somepony bite down on his mane. As he struggled to keep his head down with all his might, he found that his face was slowly being raised to the sun. Silence ensued, and he felt something touch his forehead.

"He obviously knows who we are and where we live. He's a pegasus, not a crystal pony, and he was running away. So, Twilight, how can you be so calm?"

That struck a dark chord inside him.

_"Calm?" _

_"You look like you're having a good day, like absolutely everything was perfect..." _

_"You think I'm having a good day?"_

_"Erm...well...you see..."_

_"You really think that I'm having a good day? After yesterday? ...Yes. I'm having a perfect day. Of course I'm having a good day, I mean, how could I not? The past week of my life has been perfect!"_

John tried to inch away from the object, as tendrils of magic wormed their way into his mind. As the distant memory passed through his mind, he felt the tendrils recoil, and a pang of emotional grief exploded inside him.

"Get off me!" John's eyes snapped open. He flapped his wings, and his mane was released. Unable to stop basic physics, his head thumped against the crystal ground, hard, and the darkness of sleep claimed him.

**/br/**

"Twilight? You alright?" Dash asked as Twilight picked herself up from the floor, rubbing her head once she stood up.

"I think so. He shouldn't be able to block my spell, so I'm a little confused and tired, that's all."

"Wait, he _blocked_ a Grade 5 memory spell?" Rarity emphasised.

Twilight was stunned for a moment, before shaking her head. "How do you know what spell I used?"

"A lady must expand her knowledge sometimes. Even if I can't use the spell, I can learn it, my dear Twilight."

"Oh. And to answer your question, yes. Although, I did break through into his thoughts."

"Can ya tell who he is?" Applejack asked.

"No. It's... er... I don't exactly know how to phrase it. It's like a... uhm..." Twilight frowned.

Everypony aside from the unconscious pegasus looked at each other uncomfortably for a few moments, silence filling the void.

"Oh! A storm of chaos!" Twilight announced, momentarily excited.

Rainbow Dash's expression darkened at this statement.

"You make it sound like it is chaos." Rarity returned, tilting her head at the pegasus, studying him intently.

"I just don't know how else to put it." Twilight kicked her hoof against the ground, deep in thought.

"Alright. Ya'll can stay here, and mahself, Pinkie and Shy will go an' get help." Applejack said. Twilight nodded at her, and the cowpony walked off, with Fluttershy and Pinkie hot on her heels.

"All I want to know is why he was spying on us." Dash muttered, gazing down at the dark grey stallion.

"Maybe he wasn't." Twilight mused, "I think he was hiding from us."

"Why?" Dash looked up, raising an eyebrow.

"I don't know. All I know is that either he, or somepony else, is blocking me from seeing his memories. That only happens if a pony has been in suffient emotional termoil or trauma."

"Agh! Let's just bring him to Princess Cadence. She'll know what to do with him."

The stallion below the three twitched, and their heads snapped down in shock.

"Twilight?" Rarity asked, noticing first.

"Yes, Rarity?"

"What's the record for the longest time without having a cutie mark?" Rarity pointed at his flank.

Dash frowned, and looked down on her side.

"Hey! He has this weird scar up one side of his flank, just... like..."

Her eyes opened in shock, and Twilight shared a glance with Rarity.

"It can't be. He looks nothing like John. The idea is simply preposterous."

"Open his eyes; see if he's awake." Twilight ordered, still massaging her head.

Rarity used her magic to flip him over, and carefully opened one of his eyes.

It was red.

"Curious." Twilight breathed, crouching down to get a closer look. "Only unicorns could have red eyes, unless he's been affected by Anti-Magi, of course."

"Like Discord?" Rarity asked.

"Yeah."

Twilight looked up at Dash. The cyan pegasus was frozen in place, blinking every few seconds. As she looked closer, she could see a trickle of a tear in her right eye, and a slightly swishing tail to accompany the action.

"So it could be John, or isn't?"

"I haven't a clue, darling. I think we should bring him to Princess Cadence and your brother. And then, we can go and see if there's anything in the library about defending the kingdom. That's the priority."

**/br/**

"Hah! I hope it hurt, you thrice blasted foal!" A masculine voice, deep and melodious, cackled through the darkness, bouncing off the walls and reverberating in the eardrums of any within earshot. As the laughter died down, there was a sudden and unexpected flash of light; hued the foulest green. It briefly illuminated the darkest reaches of the treacherous cavern, throwing a few of the inhabitants into view for a miniscule amount of time. Their eyes, a piercing and cold shade of blue reflected the light, giving them a glowing appearance whilst it lasted. Tongues clacked as they glanced at one another, unsure of what to do. Black exoskeletons shone momentarily. Then, silence.

A great, hulking beast of an insectiod pony sauntered from the source of the flash, a rare thin-lipped smile on his face. He was blacker than night itself, the dull steel armour he wore glinting in the near darkness. His hooves, if you could call them hooves, were encased in bracers of an equally dark metal, the bottoms of which thumped against the stone underhoof as he approached. His mane, dirty and unkempt from a period of mourning, flowed down the back of his neck, a horrible sea of dark grey-green framing his face. His eyes were alight with malice and the darkest of intents, green flames dancing in his cat-like pupils.

His horn, twisted and gnarled, jutted out of his forehead at a proud angle. His wings, folded against his thin but muscular torso, glittered in the remnants of the light. The stark ebony crown upon his head gave out an otherworldly glow, mysterious and entrancing to the creatures. He turned with a regal flourish, smiling down at the confused populace. A few dared to tilt their heads and hiss, inquiring as to what had happened.

"He is alive and unstable. All it will take is one push, and he will be ours. For now, prepare."

He looked up to the distant ceiling, murkily shrouded from his view.

"Chrysalis was too cautious, too slow."

His horn began to light up like a firecracker, green sparks flying off it at every angle imaginable.

"And she was struck down because of it."

The light became harsher and infinitely more bright.

"Celestia, and her _pitiful _sister Luna will fall."

The creatures began to circle around him, gathering. More appeared from the darkness, hundreds of pairs of beady eyes lighting up with feral excitement.

"And we," He shouted, a cacaphony of distortion gracing the ears of his subjects and spurring them on.

He paused, listening to the hisses of those who had congregated around him with a wide grin, a sight never seen on his face before. A drop of sweat slid down one side of his face; the strain of holding the spell was overwhelming.

"Will have our _**revenge**_!" He finished, firing the spell he had been charging into the cavern ceiling. It hit the rock and sizzled, melting through countless layers before breaching the ground above. Drops of molten rock dripped from the aperture created, splashing lightly against the stone below with little plops. There were hushed whisperes around the cavern.

All of a sudden, out of nowhere, the ground began to shake. The bolt of energy had burst out into the surface, expanding rapidly until it filled a large dip in the rocky mountains, situated among the dusty plains of the Badlands. The rock on either side was starting to melt, forming a fiery pool of death that trickled into the dip. Boulders began to tumble, picking up speed as they rushed down the mountainside, occasionally being thrown into the air by odd extrusions in the stone crags.

Slowly but surely, the lava eventually spilled over an edge that was slightly lower down than the others, quickly rushing in to bolster the volume of the magically burning, and as such, ever flowing liquid. It poured down the ancient, scorched sandstone, creating a picturesque vision of Tartarus, heralding doom and despair.

Inside the cavern, the creatures were cheering and frenzied, whooping and laughing as one grotesque devilish choir that never sung in harmony. Even as they celebrated, even more were drawn to the abnormal addition to their landscape, knowing full well what was now going to happen.

Revenge.

**/br/**

A spark of awareness, similar to coming out of a long sleep, was the only thing occupying John's thoughts. The scent of perfume hung lightly in the air, delicately working it's way into his nostrils. He welcomed it, and took a measured breath, sniffing at the aroma delicately, as to preserve and appreciate it. After a few more tentative breaths, he cracked an eyelid open completely. As soon as he did so, he hissed and shut it again; the light streaming in through a window to much to bear in his current state. Recovering quickly, he slowly opened both eyes, and tried to look around.

His vision was blurred, and as such, he could only make out the faintest of details; medium sized blobs of colour obscured most of what he could see. John shook his head wearily to clear his line of sight.

Three figures he recognised were standing before him, all in their own resplendant glory and nobility. The first was a mare of small stature compared to her compatriots, purple in colour, eyes sparkling with a mixture of unreadable emotions. She stared at John knowingly, as if she had caught him out. The second was a taller mare, a warm comforting pink in hue. Her wings, two toned and magnificent, were folded precisely against her chest. Her horn was aglow with a soft purple glow, calming the stallion considerably. Her face was lined with fatigue; dark bags under her eyes betrayed her pleasant air of happiness. The last, and perhaps the most formidable of the three, was a mare of equal height to the previous, but coloured in respectable hues of the night; blues and dark purples. Her teal eyes shone with a mixture of admiration and confusion, and were securely locked onto John's own red pair. Her wings were spread regally, and her horn was levelled at his prone form.

"Erm... Hi?" He said. The mares were not fools, and didn't fall for his deceit. They approached slowly, hoofsteps muffled due to his groggy hearing. John carefully, but swiftly, got to all fours, wobbling on his hooves as he struggled to regain balance. As he shook his mane, he watched the greyed colours swish around him before settling in his usual style. As they got closer, he ducked down, lowering his head to the floor in an equal display of fear and acceptance.

"Princess Luna, Princess Cadence, Twilight." He uttered, keeping his eyes squarely on the floor.

"John... You're alive." Twilight whispered, watching him curiously.

"Yeah. Unfortunately." He returned, a little bit on the spiteful side. Twilight winced as if she'd been stung, but quickly regained her composure, lowering herself to the floor to try and make eye contact.

"Why would it be 'unfortunate'?" Cadence asked, watching the stallion refraining from looking up at the three.

_Will have their __**revenge**__!_

John gasped, and lifted a hoof up to his head, staggering forward as he did so. He heard a insectiod buzzing in his ears, like millions of pairs of wings right next to his ear. He froze in place, strangely attracted to the noise.

In his mind's eye, as he stood there, he saw a mountain explode into a maelstrom of fire and flames, and a city collapsing in the rubble as it sped down the cliffside. It swiftly changed form, separating into pieces and reforming. Now, John saw another explosion of fire, centered on a pony's silhouette. It engulfed the shadow, and then dispersed. By now, the stallion was shaking slightly as he stood, staring blankly at the three mares. When it was gone completely, he muttered incoherently, a dull ache behind his eyeballs making him lose rational thought for a moment.

"John?" Luna asked, stepping forward. When he did not respond, she touched her horn to his forehead, a brilliant blue glow bursting into life. Her eyes went wide, and then her brow notted. The stallion promptly went slack, collapsing into a heap on the floor. He felt no pain as he hit the crystal, but he was aware that he would have even more bruises. Through the haze of tiredness, he was able to catch a few words, eyelids beginning to droop.

_"...Canterlot...Celestia...alert her...knows..."_

_"...he see? Is he..."_

_"No... Stay...empire...I need..."_

He watched between forced openings of his eyes as Luna began to gallop away, her etheral mane waving in a faint breeze as she ran. And then, the darkness claimed him again.

**/br/**

A feeling of weightlessness accompanied by the quaint sensation of being numb was the first thing that John was aware of. It felt similar to sleeping, but he was obviously not sleeping. That alone was a cause for concern. Eyes bursting open, he drew in a quick breath and scanned his surroundings. He saw nothing but black.

_What in the name of..._

Looking down, he found himself to be standing on nothingness, and whinnied in surprise. Jumping up into the void, he tried to spread his wings, but soon discovered that he was actually supported by the nothingness, and resolved to bring them back to his sides. Or, at least, he thought he had. After a few moments of deliberation within his head, he resorted to idily corkscrewing on the spot.

It was a unique and eerie experience, not feeling the effects of rotating, nor seeing the world in front of him spin with him. This struck him as rather strange, and he stopped.

"Am I even spinning, or was I imagining it?" He asked, not expecting a reply from the empty space. When he didn't hear one, he sighed in relief, thankful that this was not just a hallowed dream. This was a reality, and he was finally dead.

_But am I?_

Again, the questioning voice in his head piped up, and he hushed it quickly.

Squinting in the dark, he looked around again. As he gazed into whatever was in front of him, he couldn't help but think about how nice it would be to see. No sooner than he had finished his silent declaration, had a small flickering orb of brightness blazed into life overhead. He blinked once, a little alarmed, but consoled himself swiftly. Almost immediately, the light went out, extinguished by an ominous breeze that chilled him to the bone.

He imagined another orb to combat the mournful reinvasion of darkness, the fresh light casting out a warmth that he welcomed, warily casting his eyes around him once more to search for the source of the wind. The brilliance of the sphere lit up the area in front of him, and he was oddly confused at what he saw.

The sleeping form of a stallion no bigger than he was in front of John. At least, he assumed a stallion; it was a crude representation. Bright colours, jagged edges and an otherworldly glow scarcely made up a pony. He thought it cartoonish, and then remembered the irony of living in a cartoon-like plane of existence. The numbness began to recede as his gaze rested on the form. Eventually, he found himself able to feel his limbs again, and was overjoyed and disappointed to find he still had hooves.

Remembering his priorities, he began to look around more, but his eyes kept wandering back to the stallion. Giving up, he let his body control itself.

Out of nowhere, beyond the hues of twilight, the "stallion" twitched, edging towards the light. As it approached, John begun to take notice of it, in particular, he was drawn to observing the colours.

A grey body. A light blue and azure mane. An unrefined blue meteor drawn on the flank facing him.

Shaded Comet.

Unable to avert his gaze, he helplessly watched as the awkward impersonation raised its head weakly, meeting John's eyes with a pair of empty pits even darker than the void behind it. John was startled momentarily, until something above the likeness of Shaded caught his eye.

Faint strings were attached to the limbs and body, and he followed them, until he came to the pony, or rather, creature behind this.

Made up in a similar manner to Shaded, the orange draconequus smiled down at John, a curious expression that he didn't expect.

"Discord." John muttered, rolling his eyes.

"What's wrong? I thought you'd be happy to see me again. Of course, once we got past all the hate and all..." The spirit replied, shrugging off the venomous look that John gave him.

"There are no words beyond "hate" that I could use to describe my feelings towards you." John returned.

Discord looked hurt. "Ouch. That's a little deep, don't you think?"

"Nope."

The spirit dropped the strings, fixing him with an agitated look. "Oh lighten up, will you?"

John raised an eyebrow. "Lighten up? You," John pointed a hoof at him, "want me," he pointed at himself, "to _lighten_ up?"

"That's what I said, isn't it? Or did I give the wrong impression?"

"Just shut up."

Discord growled, and silenced John with a raised claw. "I'm here under the banner of peace," he said, waving a white flag above his head, before disspelling it, "but with all joking aside, what I have to say is important. Unfortunately, what you have not yet realised, and neither have anypony else, is that you can't kill a spirit. All you have done in your little crusade, all you have succeeded in, is simply halting me momentarily. And, on top of that, put in motion a series of events that could potentially destroy Equestria." He finished with a dismissive wave of his lion's paw.

"What?!"

Discord grinned at him, reaching out with a talon to prod his cheek.

"Did it ever occur to you that Chrysalis had a husband?"

The crushing reality hit him like a wet sock in the face.

"Oh."

"Yes, oh. But, what you have also done has begun another series of events that will counter him. For instance," Discord pointed to himself, doing a somersault, "You have absorbed me."

"What do you mean?" John questioned, a little distraught.

"You forget again. In the month that I have been a part of you, I saw each and every one of your memories, which stopped you from seeing them. I know who you are, right down to the most insignificant of details. Including when you and Luna had that conversation."

"You mean..."

"Mmhmm. You didn't think carefully about your method, did you? I mentioned before, spirits can't be killed. There are quite a few who you have met already, in pony form. Most are broken, shadows of who they were. But all are important. Therefore, there must, I repeat, must always be a spirit of Chaos and Disharmony. _That _is how I'm talking to you. I am now a part of you, until I regain enough strength to give myself a body again."

Discord stopped his antics, and looked John dead in the eye.

"But you are unique. Luna has explained to you who I used to be. And because you have the combined power of three of the strongest spirits dormant inside you, two of them being positive, you have changed me."

"When Magi or Anti-Magi is transferred between objects or people, the reciever will always undergo a change..." John whispered, studying the draconequus carefully for any signs of deceit.

"Correct. The Magi in you was displaced by the full force of of the spirit of Chaos entering you, and it had to go somewhere. Effectively, you are now the spirit of Chaos, until such a time as you can bestow it upon somepony else."

John stayed silent, brain completely numb. He was completely gobsmacked. Discord stayed silent for a few moments, allowing John to regain his thoughts. Once he had given him a sufficient amount of time, he continued.

"But... Spirits aren't always physical. I was the spirit of Chaos and Disharmony, one of which is intangible. The inverse is my previous form; the spirit of Order and Harmony."

"So..." John rolled his hoof, barely understanding.

"You are now the holder of two polar opposites. Congratulations, it's a first. Chaos, Order, Harmony and Disharmony are now a part of you."

"But they balance each other out, so I can't be all four, can I?" John shook his head, watching the draconequus spin around him in circles.

"No. That is why I am still here. For as long as I am here, the four combined make up the spirit of _Balance_." Discord stressed. "If I were to leave, you would become the spirit of Chaos, and as such, I would have to destroy you."

"Because you're the spirit of Order and Harmony." It was a statement, not a question, which Discord recognised.

"Indeed. It's a vicious circle. But, as you are not, and never will be, a natural holder of the spirit, you cannot house it. Again, that is why I was absorbed. If I wasn't, the power would have made your head explode, literally."

John blinked. "Oh."

"Welcome to life. Enjoy your stay." Discord quipped. He stopped moving again, landing beside John. "There is a way out, but it requires the help of a large number of spirits."

"And that is? I'm not sure if I want to be an all-knowing, all-powerful God."

Discord laughed, the deep melody bouncing off the walls of his mind.

"You bestow Balance onto me. After all, I am a natural holder, and it means that-"

WIthout warning, the draconequus disappeared, whisked away by the ominous wind. The chilled air made him shiver, but it was gone quickly.

John sighed wearily, frowned, and then lay his head upon his hooves, the final words replaying in his head.

**A/N-**

**You've seen the message, so that's really it aside from a quick reminder. Please leave me a review, maybe even follow/favourite if you liked this chapter. There's more to come, either way, so watch your email inboxes.**

**Arrivaderci,**

**Daz.**


	3. Prologue Part 3

**I'm alive!**

**A/Ns: **

**Sorry for the longest period of time it has ever taken me to write a chapter. It's been a hectic few weeks, and I've been getting around ten minutes a day to add to this, so if it's off character sometimes, now you know.**

**Also, two notices. One, OCs are open to any and all. If you're a lucky soul and already have submitted an OC that was featured in TTOASC, expect them to be rearing their heads pretty soon. Two, starting from this chapter (providing I get enough of them), I'll start responding to reviews in the A/N. So, please, drop me a review; I'll love you forever and send you cookies and chapters and ponies and chaos and other delicious things.**

**In no particular order:**

**-CountOfJoy: Well, now you've got an account! Smiley face!**

**-Chief Wolfee: I appreciate the sympathy, Chief. I have next to no free time now, but it'll be worth it. Cheers bud.**

**-dazza the lucario: I believe I responded to yours personally, so I'll give you one thing. /).**

**Magic, Chapter 3, Unwanted Memories Part 3**

The first thing John was aware of was his throbbing head, the spark of awareness spreading like a wildfire through his skull. Keeping his eyes securely shut, so as to not betray his consciousness, he discreetly wriggled his one of his hooves, making sure he was able to make a quick escape. Flexing his wings underneath him, he felt a small flutter as they responded to his will. A small smile appeared on his face, overjoyed that he wasn't torn to pieces by a distraught Luna after he lost consciousness. Wait, did he lose consciousness? Was it just an illusion? Or was it actually Discord? Dismissing the train of thought before he became immersed in the question, he accepted the first and third options.

Just to make it easier. He already had a headache, after all.

Slowly opening his eyes, he gazed blearily around his surroundings, his groggy brain trying to formulate a plan. From what he could see, he was in a dimly lit, beautifully decorated room of an average size; expensive drapes and curtains in shades of purple and blue made up a lot of what he could see. A thin stream of daylight filtered in through a gap in the purple, landing squarely on a row of bookcases on the far wall. Rows upon rows of the novels and tomes were blanketed in a shroud of dust, hiding the titles from view. Not that it mattered; he was still unable to read Equestrian. Blinking wearily, he looked down at what he was lying on. It was a simple bed, scarily comfortable and welcoming. Purple sheets, with a white snowflake emblazoned underneath him greeted his eyes, and he paused to take it in for a moment.

Raising himself fully off the bed, and dangling his hind legs over the side, John sighed.

The moment the sound, barely a whisper, escaped his lips, he was aware of hoofsteps faintly approaching. Throwing himself off the bed in a blind panic, his eyes darted over to the door. It was too far away to reach and escape before whoever the hooves belonged to made it to the door, leaving one option. Slowly, and carefully as to not make unnecessary commotion, he began sneaking towards the purple curtains. Thankfully, his hooves were muffled by what appeared to be a blue woven rug, with the same white snowflake printed in the middle, but it never hurt to be too cautious.

Especially if one is attempting another daring escape, immediately after failing one's original attempt.

With just a few inches to left to travel, John tried to pull the fabric aside with magic. He concentrated on moving it silently to the side, but absolutely nothing happened. Not even a twitch, or a slight tug. Frowning, he began again, but with the same results. The hoofsteps were getting closer, he realised, and he bit down on the curtain, drawing it aside with a little more force than what would have been necessary. It fell heavily, the material heavier than he expected, landing with a swish of air. Jumping backwards in surprise, his wings shot out with an even louder _whump_. Biting down on his tongue to stop himself from cursing, he hastily poked his head through the aperture left by the curtain, not expecting there to be any more barriers.

He was wrong. His head slammed into the window, bouncing of the glass with a dull impact of bone. Rearing back on his hind legs, he brought a hoof to his head, struggling not to curse anything under the sun for his misfortune. His headache increased tenfold, and he was disorientated by the pain momentarily. A moment was all it took.

The door was pushed open, and he turned around, flaring his wings out in preparation for an attack. Instead he was met with the uncertain gaze of Spike the dragon. John scowled down at the purple assistant, baring his teeth slightly. Spike remained unaffected, yawning slightly either in tiredness or boredom. John took a step forward. Spike produced a scroll out of nowhere, and held it teasingly to the side.

"I'll send it." Was all he said, with such a chilling tone that it disturbed John. Blinking in shock, he bit his lip, thinking.

_Could I get past him? Undoubtably. Could I grab the scroll before he sends it to Princess Celestia? Doubtful._

"You wouldn't dare." John challenged him, taking a step forward. Strangely, under any other circumstances, such a situation would leave him pumped with adrenaline, but he was eerily calm. Spike opened his mouth, raising the scroll to his chest height. There was still around two ponylengths between the two, and neither was going to give ground to the other.

"I would." Spike swore, a thin lipped grimace on his face.

The stallion and the dragon locked eyes, green against red.

_Just give up._Was his subconsciousness' not so helpful input on the situation.

"Give up? You forget who you're talking to." John returned, not feeling at all foolish for talking to himself.

_Would you rather have them chase you down, or you go to them?_

"Neither. Now get out of my head."

John blocked his now suspiciously pain free head from the spirit, and turned his attention back to the dragon. Spike had a bemused expression on his face, scroll even closer to his mouth. Raising an eyebrow, the dark grey stallion motioned to him with a wave of his hoof. "What?"

"I don't trust you. Who were you talking to?" Spike questioned, the scroll directly in front of his teeth.

"Nopony. Myself." John growled back, uncomfortably scraping his hoof along the rug, pawing at it.

"You feeling alright?" Spike lowered the scroll slightly.

"You tell me. I could have a concussion for all I know. Or brain damage. That would explain a lot."

Spike blinked, before glancing behind him.

A million different plans were formulated in John's mind in that split second, and he decided on one. Time slowed down as he breathed in, everything being seen in spectacular detail and precision. Dashing forward with a powerful flap of his aching wings, he grabbed the scroll with his mouth, and began to gallop, all before the poor baby dragon had time to react. John blinked, feeling the adrenaline soften the impact of his hooves to the point of not feeling them hit the floor, like he was running on air.

Running on air. Oh.

He sighed, not resisting the magical hold now that he was now aware of. He had barely made it out of the door before being caught.

"Damn it." He whispered, dropping the scroll in the process. It bounced once, fluttering in the still air, and landed. Slowly, as John looked on, it rolled open, revealing... nothing?

John spun around in the magical grip, eying Spike suspiciously. The lilac dragon shrugged, bending over to pick it up. "You seriously think that I carry letters around?" Spike gave him a smug grin. John stuck his tongue out, since he couldn't flip him the bird, or make any similar grotesque gestures. The assistant blew a raspberry at John, and began to greet whoever had stopped him. John refused to acknowledge the other presence, even as he was gently dropped back to the crystal floor, but not yet released.

**Meanwhile...**

Even through the daily toils and troubles she had to sit through, the bringer of the sun, Princess Celestia, still managed to make time to indulge herself. It was the least she deserved, and in all honesty, it was all the Elite allowed her. Ugh, how she hated the Elite. They weren't all bad, however, but one bad apple spoils the bunch. Unfortunately. She stopped musing, turning her attention to the platter in front of her. As usual, she had politely requested that everypony, save for Luna, left her alone for five minutes.

She was now sitting alone, staring at a single slice of cake. It wasn't expensive, or made with the finest sugars. It was a simple arrangement between herself and the Cake family. Every week, they would send up a cake, each time of a different variety, in exchange for the regular price and publicity. It was a good situation for each side, and neither had regretted it since. It had then become a daily routine to settle down with a cup of tea, and a slice of said cake, each and every day.

Today, it was chocolate.

Taking a sip of her tea, she let the sweet, hot beverage calm her nerves. Luna had vanished from the castle a while ago, and hadn't returned since. She had left neither a note or a notification from a guard; if anything, the Royal Guard were just as shocked as her. Celestia had since been on edge, worried about her whereabouts. After all, Luna was still recovering from escaping the moon a second time. But still, she could take care of herself.

Placing down the dainty, minute cup she was using, she looked around, studying her surroundings with the intent of distracting herself. She was currently in her own private bedroom, nestled in one of the highest towers of Canterlot. Not the highest one, however. That belonged to somepony else, even after it had been refurbished into a sightseeing point, complete with telescope. The same one that Discord had met his end, after being tackled of the edge by a pony she had never seen before.

After all, she had been imprisoned and impersonated for at least a year, after that Faust-damned Changling Queen, disguised as a lesser Changling with no horn, had infiltrated Celestia's room in the dead of the night after being brought inside. She couldn't possibly know everything. How the ponies she cared for assumed such a thing was beyond her and her sister, but she never said anything.

Her eyes were drawn to the newest addition to go into the Hall of the Elements. It was a window, a carefully and precisely crafted sheet of glass. But this were different to the others. Two had been created by herself and Luna, commerating that mysterious pony.

The first, created by herself, was a rendition of the scene unfolded in front of her, and her interpretation of the situation when the pony, (whom she had assumed to be Shaded Comet originally, until her sister and student had told her that it was in fact a sentient creature who called himself John, who had been forced into the body by the Changling Queen) had tackled Discord off the highest tower, plummeting to both their dooms over three thousand metres below, landing on the outskirts of Ponyville.

It depicted the grey pegasus flying down, wings spread, with Discord held in place by "John"'s hooves. In the background was blue sky, and soft clouds, signifying the peace he restored. But the most striking thing, even to her, the creator, was the brilliant rainbow directly behind John, and the spectrum-tinted flames engulfing his body as he fell. In the light, be it from Luna's moon or her sun, it sparkled, glowing, casting the room into a glorious blaze of colour.

The second, created by Luna, had been placed elsewhere. It was a lot smaller, but for a reason.

Celestia rose up, striding towards her balcony. It was open air, so that she could raise the sun, and comfortably see the city sprawling underneath. It also happened to have a table, so as an afterthought, she levitated her slice of cake outside with her.

Below, in the centre of Canterlot, a monument had been built. It was both simplistic and unique in design, taking the shape of a raised arch. Each of the stone pillars supporting the structure had the names of every last pony, mare or stallion, that had been murdered by the Changlings etched into the surface. The stone itself was glossy, making each and every last section sparkle brilliantly. Between the pillars was a smaller monument, dedicated to the Royal Guards that had been murdered akin to their civilian counterparts. Here, each individual name was engraved on an obsidian black plate, mounted on the surface.

But the most striking part of the entire monument was in the arch itself. Luna's window was imbedded in the centre, so that when the sun or the moon rose at their respective times, the first rays of light from either celestial body would shine through the window at an exact point. It was a pain to get it in the right place, but Luna had figured it out eventually. The window background was a dark azure, dotted with small, clear stars. Mentioned stars were surrounding a burning yellow halo, glowing with an otherworldly light; in the centre of the halo was a depiction of the moon. In front of the moon was that pony, hooves outstretched upwards, wings flared to the sides.

It had confused Celestia to no end, learning that, in her and Luna's absence, "John" had raised the moon in front of the sun. From what she learned, it was a beacon to war, a call to arms. But, how he did it... That information was unknown. Nopony knew how he had done the impossible. The unthinkable. And yet, he had.

Taking another sip of her now almost drained cup of tea, she sighed in annoyance. She had known this "John" for all of ten minutes before he died. He had rallied uncountable ponies to his cause, singlehandedly killed both Changling Generals, and then killed the Queen, and she barely knew who he was.

And why was that? Because he had been alive for two weeks. One doesn't tend to make a lot of friends in that lifetime. That, and the fact that Luna seemed to be hiding information from her.

Mysterious.

A pang of hunger slipped through her train of thought, and she wriggled her nose. Lifting up the slice of cake, she studied it for a moment, before bringing it to her mouth.

There was a gust of wind as the door to her bedroom was forced open, slamming on the wall supporting it. Her head snapped around, etheral mane whipping in the air, cake still in front of her mouth. She hastily set down the slice, exhaling to show her displeasure. But, as the pony burst through the door with a cry of "Tia!", her mood turned to one of worry.

"Lulu!"

Luna slid to a halt, firmly planting her hooves into the floor. Celestia stepped forwards, confusion evident on her face, but she was cut off from saying anything.

"Sis! The Empire! John! Discord!"

Thankfully, after an exchange between himself and Princess Cadence, he was allowed to roam free inside the castle. So far, he was getting bored of seeing his reflection in everything, and was itching to fly around properly. But, until such a time when he could, he was stuck, alone, with his thoughts.

He was dreading to see them again, but from what he had heard on his walk around the crystal fortress, they were attempting to find him. That was enough to send him scampering back down the hall with his tail between his legs every time he heard hoofsteps in his immediate vicinity.

_Coward._

He had plonked his flank down on a bench under a window, buried his head in his hooves, and let his thoughts loose. Outside, the sun as shining, but everything seemed bleak to him. Right now, even if the six angry mares rounded the corner, he wouldn't budge.

_But why would they be angry? I killed... well, got rid of Discord..._

_They're angry because they barely knew you. You played all of them for fools._

_Not all of them; Dash. She knew._

The name sent a shiver down his spine. How did she react to his death?

_She screamed out my name, didn't she?_

_Doesn't matter. A friend would do the same._

_But isn't she more than a friend?_

"More than a friend?" He asked bitterly, his voice echoing through the halls. "She was to Shaded. Not me."

_But what is she to you?_

_Nothing more than a friend. She thought I was Shaded._

_Then why did you kiss her?_

The mental question shook him, bringing a memory to mind.

_I... Don't know...?_

_You love her._

_I don't! At least, I don't think so... I was depressed... I just needed someone... Anypony who would listen..._

_Pointlessly depressed, though._

_Hardly. I thought I saw my daughter die before my eyes!_

_True, but why Rainbow Dash? Why her...?_

He flicked his ear, hearing something in the distance drfit into his mind.

_**"Hear ye! Hear ye! Princess Cadence and Prince Shining Armour do..."**_

He blanked it out.

_Ugh... where was I? Oh! Dash..._

He swished his tail, unsure.

_I chose Dash because... we needed each other... I was depressed, she was depressed..._

_You fit together._

_No, we don't...?_

His brain stopped working momentarily as he mused over that thought.

_I chose her because... as much as I hated it, Shaded was still a part of me... It was easier..._

_But do you love her?_

_I... suppose I do..._

The voice in his head that happned to be his stopped responding, and left him alone.

_Alone._

A flash of determination found him on his hooves.

"I don't want to be alone." He whispered, looking through the window, peering down into the streets below. Something was going on; there were brightly coloured tents here and there, more stalls than he could care to count, and a lot of ponies in the streets.

_A celebration of sorts?_

Shrugging, he turned away, beginning to trot through the hallways with a goal in mind. He was a stallion on a mission. As he rounded a corner, he found himself face to face with his reflection, and he frowned at it.

"Oh no, you're not stopping me. I messed up, and I need to apologise."

Smiling at himself, he spun away, spreading his wings.

**A few minutes later...**

After rushing through the halls and out of a door, he found himself outside in the sun, an small, odd smile on his face. The air, strangely, wasn't as stale as he remembered it, and the jovial grins on the ponies around him lifted his spirits, a boost of confidence injected straight into him by the change of scenery. There wasn't a single dull coat in sight, and it brightened his mood considerably, for some quaint reason he couldn't quite place his metaphorical finger on.

_I imagine it's just me trying to quell any stray thoughts._

_Well, it's working._

_**It would be better if you were in a good mood anyway.**_

John found himself absent-mindedly nodding in agreement, the quaint grin still worn proudly.

"It would be, wouldn't it? I can't afford to be in a bad mood, as much as you're helping me; I'm still stronger at the moment."

_**What do you mean?**_

At that moment, John swore he could see the draconequus appear in front of him, leaning on a nearby stand without a care in the world. Discord regarded him with a curiously knowing expression, but had a cocky grin that ultimately angered John. Dashing over and sliding to a halt in front of him, barely avoiding a crystal pony in the process, he began to string together a list of profanities before being interrupted by a wave of Discord's lion paw. Shaking his head in disbelief, John narrowed his eyes.

"How are you out _here_?" He hissed, barely louder than a hoarse whisper. Discord simply stood up straight, and begun to stretch, seemingly oblivious to the ponies around him, who were now congregating around the stand. The crowd didn't take notice of him, barely even batting an eyelid.

John, startled, glanced around behind him. Eyes rapidly flitting from pony to Discord to pony, he felt his eye twitch. What the hay was going on here?

Discord cracked his neck, and turned his head to face John, smirking.

**I'm not actually here. At least, not really. Now, are you going to answer my question?**

"What?"

**Are you going to answer my question? Y'know, you saying that you're stronger than me?**

Taking a deep breath to calm himself, John blinked several times, and exhaled heavily whilst looking down and to the right.

"My body."

**True, but I'm in it. I'm keeping you safe from yourself.**

"Whatever."

Discord flew over the heads of the ponies, landing at his side without so much as a sound. Many of them were expressing their confusion at him talking to himself. He brushed their looks aside without a second care in the world. _Now, all they needed to do was find..._

"Hey!"

_Or that._

John groaned, turning to face one of five ponies he didn't want to run into before finding Dash. The mare in question, a bright pink mare with a personality every bit as quirky as her mane, was bouncing towards him, seemingly under the impression that he was a crystal pony. No matter. Discord watched with a bemused expression as the party pony opened her eyes mid-bounce, and saw John.

Her mane deflated instantly, eyes adopting a colder, harsher look.

John didn't spare her a second thought; he just galloped away with his tail between his legs, ducking and weaving through the bustling city centre with a number of mishaps. He knew he could run, but he couldn't hide. But strangely, some primal instinct inside him spurred him onwards. Adrenaline coursed through his veins unlike ever before.

He didn't even get a dignified hoofshake when she caught him, a whole four seconds later. After a moment of weightlessness, John found himself planted firmly on his face after running into the mare. He had promptly tripped, and ended up on the floor, wings flapping spasmodically behind him. At that moment, John lost all faith in the laws of reality forever. There was no way in hell she could move that fast.

Discord, drifting along behind the pegasus, gave him a mournful look when Pinkie blocked him.

"Uhhh..." John moaned, rubbing his forehead with his hoof groggily, the floor in front of him spinning and dipping as he lay on the ground.

Pinkie trotted over, looking eerily calm.

"Nopony breaks a Pinkie promise."

"...Pinkie Promise?" John coughed, not entirely sure of what incident Pinkie was refering to.

_"I love you so much..." He whispered, stroking aside an errant strand of her blond mane, looking deeply into her rose eyes, and kissing her on the forehead again, but with as much fatherly love he could muster. She jumped on him, wrapping her hooves around him one final time, pouring her heart out._

_"You'd better... come back...promise me..." She sniffled, refusing to let go. John's composure flickered, and he dropped his voice a few decibels, so only Hope could hear him._

_"Cross my heart...and hope to fly...Stick a...cupcake...in my...eye..." He softly whispered, nuzzling her face._

"Oh... no..." He placed his hoof against his head in regret, a distant memory brought back to mind. He _had_ promised.

"She's still with Zecora, just so as you know." was all she said. With that, her mane inflated again, and she hopped off.

In utter exhaustion and defeat, John dropped his hoof to the ground, his head following swiftly after, tears dripping from his eyes. Heart wrenching waves of emotion rocketed through his body. All that he been blissfully unaware of had just come crashing down around him, shattering against the cold, hard ground.

"Hope..."

**Some more minutes later...**

Head held low, tail limp and mane partly hiding his face from the world, John traversed the now bleak and bleary world around him with a level of awareness only just noticable. He was so deep in thought that he was narrowly avoiding bumping into everything, and that was only because they noticed him first and made way for the musing pegasus. Slowly making his way in a random, winding manner with no particular destination in mind, he blanked out all sound as he thought.

_How long has it been?_

Avoiding an unmanned food stall with something that vaguely resembled corn on the cob, he steadily brought his head up to glance around. The moment he did, his eyes stung due to an unfortunately timed bitter wind that blew his mane back. Blinking away the tears; the twin streams of water were rolling down his cheeks, he stopped to gaze upon the crystal gateway.

He had been _so _close to escape, to not interfering.

_I obviously came in through there, so naturally it has to be..._

"An exit..." he breathed, his breath oddly crystallizing in a cloud in front of him. It didn't escape his attention, and he frowned down at it, curious. At that exact second, he heard a malevolent chuckle, faint but distinct. All around him the ponies' heads shot up, fear and recognition dawning on their features. Eyes wide and mouths trembling, they quickly lost their sparkly lustre, proceding to shake like leaves and crouch low to the ground.

John, meanwhile, had locked eyes with the source of the laughter, on the hill with the crystal gateway. Ignoring the ponies trembling, he stepped around them and raised his head to fully meet the eyes of the newcomer.

The newcomer was immersed in smoke, hiding much of his body from view. behind him, dark stormclouds swirled and swished like an etheral cape of darkness, casting a malevolent glow across the pony's armoured torso. The armour he was wearing was as bright as harsh moonlight, not the soft, comforting moonbeams that Luna posessed. His grey coat was considerably lighter than John's, and his black mane was swept backwards into the inky fog behind him. His eyes gave off a sickly smoke, tinting the whites green and the edges purple. Two pairs of red irises met, challenging each other.

"Who is he?" He shouted, not taking his eyes off him. One of the ponies clustered at his hooves raised her had weakly, all the life seemingly drained out of her; the happiness that was exuded by the ponies before had been replaced by trepidation. Their fear seeped into the air, creating a foul cloud of negative thoughts for John. He shook them off, waiting for an answer. The mare who had raised her head, in a cracked voice, answered with a squeak.

When no other attempt at an answer came, and the pony on the hill moved even closer, he saw no other choice. Judging from their reactions, he was known. Reasonable deduction led him to the conclusion that the pony was the fabled King Sombra. That, in short, meant he was an enemy. He watched as Sombra slowly climbed into the air, assisted by the black thunderclouds that hid him away. Extending his wings, previous woe forgotten for now, John sucked in a breath of the freezing air. Behind Sombra, he could see miles upon miles of snowy wasteland, without a single non-white structure in sight. As soon as he caught that glimpse, the blackness rolled in to obscure it once more, beginning to encircle the city.

No other choice.

**What's gonna happen? Is John's mental stability questionable? What about Discord? Find out in the next chapter!**


	4. Explosive Anger Problems

**This is where I indirectly begin to introduce what "Magic" revolves around. Feel free to leave a guess in a review.**

**Because I started to write this series before Season 3 began, it won't follow it to the letter. I've adapted the storyline as much as possible, and that's that. BUT, however, as it is set in an alternate Season 3 to the one we know, there are changes. **

**Serious changes. **

**I won't mention any here; it'll ruin the hopefully nice surprise. But, in short, it's my ideas and views on how the Season should have went, regardless of John being there.**

**I just thought I'd give you a heads-up, just in case. If there are any questions whatsoever, feel free to send them to me. I'll answer them ASAP.**

**-Daz**

**Magic, Chapter 4, Explosive Anger Problems**

John leapt forwards with a ferocious war cry, all his pent up emotions released in a single hoarse yell, feeling the familiar glowing warmth of poisonous Chaos Magic overtaking his mind. Charging forwards towards Sombra, face contorted by rage, the pegasus gave into the sickly temptation after sensing the immediate power it released into his movements.

Instinctually, he extended his wings, feeling them beat the air angrily. As he galloped through the path, the assembled crystal ponies could only gape in confusion and awe. His coat darkened. His mane became slightly colourless. The feathers in his wings expanded outwards, elongating into sharp points.

As he pumped his legs, snarling at the unicorn on the hill, he flapped his wings harder. With an audible rush of air, John soared into the air, outstretching his hooves to tackle Sombra. It was then, and only then, that he realised that he wasn't moving anywhere.

Looking down, he found himself to be suspended in a black magical aura. Stubbornly refusing to give up, he struggled fruitlessly for a few moments, then eyed the King with a venemous glare.

"Sooner or later you'll have to let me go." He hissed.

King Sombra remained stoically silent, turning his head to the side slightly and licking his lips. As he did so, to John, the world around him seemed to darken. The crystal lost its lustre, becoming dull and colourless. The wind picked up momentum, chilling him to the bone as he wriggled in Sombra's grasp defiantly. Slowly, he was dragged up the hill by the levitation spell, unable to escape.

The icily rigid blades of grass became sharp, poking, and in some places even piercing the skin on his underside. He held his tongue though, until he was at the apex of the hill. Looking the unicorn in the eyes, he spat at the armoured hooves with as much disgust as possible.

All he got in return was a hearty laugh from the unicorn.

"You're the one housing the Spirit of Chaos, aren't you?" Sombra nudged John's side with a cold hoof, but got no reaction other than a look that would probably kill if it were within his power. If it were possible, anyway. The King chuckled again, smirking.

"Why not use it?" He turned away, still carrying John in a magical vice. By now, John had stopped trying to escape, unconsciously listening to Sombra despite himself. Sombra, retreating back outside the crystal gateway, turned his head to look at the pegasus.

"I can sense it. The power you have. Similar to the magic contained within my home."

He motioned absent-mindely with a hoof towards the Kingdom, pulling John outside with him. Here, the ground was obscured by the harsh snow, buffeted by the inescapable winds. John shivered after feeling the bite of the cold. Without warning, he was dumped unceremoniously on the frost-bitten ground. The arctic conditions nipped at his mental willpower, sapping the strength out of his bones instantly. All traces of Chaos magic left his mind. Tucking his hooves under him, John scowled up at the King.

The armoured and cloaked unicorn grinned down at him, exposing his sharp fangs. As he did so, John swore he saw something shift underneath the regal cloak he wore, piquing John's interest. Almost instananeously, he began to notice other things. His mane and tail moved of their own accord, like inky smoke in a light breeze. His body shape was also abnormal, more streamlined than your average stallion. As he took in the information, Sombra followed John's eyes silently.

Eventually, John looked down at Sombra's hooves. They were clad in banded steel, shimmering in the wintry light. They reflected his own eyes, casting an image of a helpless and ragged, in short, pathetic stallion back at him. John snapped his eyelids shut in frustration, and sat in a state of enraged muteness. Slowly, he heard Sombra step around him. All was quiet for a few seconds, as John studied his thoughts. A harsh bark of pain came from Sombra eventually, almost at the same time he heard a burst of magical energy. Twisting around, he saw that his suspicions were correct. There was a shield around the Crystal Empire!

Sluggishly, his eyes averted up to Sombra's forehead, and then to his horn. The tip was gone, sliced cleanly off. Small drips of blood had formed on the edge, dripping down the stump that remained. John winced at the sight.

Even he had to admit that he felt some form of sympathy for Sombra.

With a roar of agony, Sombra flung himself against the shield and bounced off the surface, tears of excruciating pain burning down his cheeks. Crimson droplets were thrown against the ground, and where each landed, a midnight black spike of crystal thrust from within the earth erupted into the daylight. The clouds became an enfuriated grey, rumbling and rolling like a sea. The wind screamed in John's ears, howling like a tormented beast.

Sombra himself melted away, leaving a cloud of billowing vapour hiding most of his body. The wisps shot out, darting around the edges of the shield until they met in an explosion of darkness. The sky above became yellowed; the sun seemed to die out. Even so, the shrieking wind swiftly died down, and Sombra reformed, leaving the smoke around the city.

"It seems that your friends have forgotten about you, _**John.**_" He hissed.

John sat in stunned silence, not noticing the two smoky tendrils stealthily approaching him from behind.

"How do you know who I am?!" John yelled back, a flurry of emotions fighting for dominance.

Sombra sneered at him, the snow under his hooves melting as he trod towards him heavily.

"You think that _**We**_ did not notice your arrival? That _**We **_are ignorant of _**Their **_meddling?" He boomed, snarling at John. Instinctively, the pegasus shrunk back from the use of the Canterlot Voice, wings flared out behind him protectively. His hooves scrabbled against the icy ground, pushing him backwards, closer to the curling arms of smoke. Sombra's eyes flashed with fury, and John glanced backwards. A yell of alarm left his mouth, and he sprung to his hooves.

"The entirety of Equestria knows of _**You**_! _**You **_have set _**Us**_, _**all of Us**_,_** FREE!**_" Sombra leapt at John, prompting the tendrils to dive at him. With a cry of fear, John jumped to the side, avoiding both. Sombra's head snapped around, and the tendrils darted at him again, forcing John to fling himself to the left, narrowly avoiding a third. The ground threw up a burst of snow, splattering his coat with freezing water. The unexpected chill made John gasp, the harsh temperature making his muscles unresponsive.

Sombra saw the opportunity, and the tendrils raced towards the pegasus. Unable to dodge, John's eyes grew wide as they got closer.

All the air was forced out of his lungs as they smashed into him, sending him sprawling into the snow. Suddenly struggling to breathe, John could only watch as Sombra stood over him, gasping for air like a fish out of water. Scowling down at him, with a grotesque smile, Sombra cracked his neck.

"I thought you'd be more of a fighter than that, John."

John's limbs were pulled taunt to his sides, the tendrils wrapping themselves securely around his hooves. Sombra continued to smile at him, leaning closer.

"After all, you killed Chrysalis, didn't you?"

Another smoky arm forced him up from behind, so that he was supported in the air by the other four, floating above the ground. John flapped his wings, and almost immediately they were grabbed by another two. They tugged on the feathers, sending a jolt of pain up his spine. A hoarse growl emanated from John's mouth, but the black, airy limbs didn't relax their grip. Sombra's eyes flashed with sudden rage and John found himself tumbling through the air breathlessly once again.

His back screamed in protest as he was dashed against the shield, his eyes fluttering in their sockets. Through half-closed eyelids, he could just about make out the blurry shapes of more tendrils surrounding him.

"How do you know all this?" He coughed, small droplets of crimson splattering against the white below. Sombra grinned, exposing his fangs. As he did so, John felt Sombra force himself into his mind.

"_**We all know, John. We've been awaiting an opportunity to escape for millenia, all of Us, and you've allowed it! You were just a pawn, as was Chrysalis. But you've accomplished much more than anypony gives you credit for. A lot more."**_

John had an inkling of what would be said next. He had limited options to do anything about it, however. His legs ached, as did his back. His head had started again with the infernal pounding, and he was pinned against a wall by a maddened King.

_**"A pity you won't see your accomplishments."**_

John couldn't help but snort at the cliché, pushing Sombra out of his mind without much struggle.

"Of all the things to say, you choose that? Really?" He questioned. Sombra didn't respond, instead giving him an odd look. John decided that he would, to break the silence, and to see Sombra's reaction, to use a cliché of his own.

"I'll stop you, whatever you're planning. You, and whoever "Us" are, won't succeed. I promise you that."

Sombra growled in annoyance. John rolled his eyes, but as he did so, he didn't notice the tendrils pull him forward, and then smack him into the magical shield with another bone crushing impact. Black on the edges of his vision, John groaned in pain, head slumped towards the ground.

_**"You have an hour to prepare. Then, we'll see if you can keep your promise."**_

Then, without warning, he felt himself falling to the ground, vision fading to black. A final burst of pain flared through his chest, and then he fell face first into wretched nothingness.

**/br/**

Rainbow Dash was confused. Not the average sort of confused, the deeper sense of bamboozlement that came in the form of not knowing how to feel. Her brain and her heart kept clashing in a furious battle for control; contrasting thoughts smashing against one another over and over.

She was, currently, standing in total silence, alone on a rooftop, absent-mindedly watching the fair go by. For some reason she couldn't quite place her hoof on, she just couldn't think straight. She wanted to believe John was alive, that he was here, but at the same time, she didn't.

Blowing an errant strand of her mane out of her eyes, she turned her attention to Jousting Grounds, staring at it through reddened, puffy eyes. Her tears had long since dried out, and she could cry no longer. Twilight was searching for the Crystal Heart, and everypony else was minding their stalls. She, meanwhile, had nothing to distract herself. She just needed something to do; the jousting competition didn't start for another half an hour or so. Anything would suffice.

All of a sudden, she dimly heard something crunching into something with a dull, resonating boom far in front of her. It was a queer sensation, ringing in her ears a lot longer than it should have done. Casting her gaze towards the Gateway; it seemed to be the source, she peered out into the distance, barely noticing the cold breeze that trickled through her wings and sky blue coat. As she did so, she was aware of a electrical tingle racing up her spine, raising the hairs there. Raising herself to all fours to see over the last rooftops, Rainbow Dash unconsciously flexed her wings.

Something was not right.

Jumping into the air, and feeling the gentle breeze catch the feathers, Dash darted closer to the Gateway. She could see nothing out of the ordinary, and cursed her inner self for being paranoid. But still, curiousity drove her to get closer. Cautiously, she placed a hoof against the edge of the shield, the surface of which was sparkling in the beams of sunlight that shone through the light, wispy clouds above. As soon as it made contact, it flickered, revealing the face-down form of that pegasus... John? No... no...

She glanced around, but there was no sign of that thing made of smoke. All that could be seen in front of her was the brilliant white snow. And John.

There was no mistaking the scars on his left flank. It was most definitely him.

WIth a sound somewhere between a groan and a squee of joy, she flew down as the shield disappeared at her touch, landing softly with an indistinct cruch of snow underhoof. Upon making contact, she felt another queer tingle crawling up her hooves and down the back of her neck; a deeply rooted sensation of unease twisting and churning in the pit of her stomach. Leaning down to place her ear to the side of his face, she heard a slow, faint breath, in turn with a slight twitch in his back.

Frowning, she placed a hoof against his neck, brushing aside his mane as she did so. There was a pulse. She exhaled a sigh of relief that did nothing to quell the sense of unease inside her; something was most definitely not right.

_"Dash! He's gone! There's nothing we can do!"_

She blinked as the memory resurfaced, before shaking her head with a soft growl. Lowering herself towards the ground, she moved forwards to bite down on his mane. As her teeth met with a large chunk of his mane between, she couldn't help but inhale. His mane smelt... it was hard to describe. It was as if it had no discernible scent, like a breath of fresh air, but it had an underlying, unmistakable feeling of charged thunderclouds, tickling the insides of her nostrils. She paid it no mind after a few more whiffs.

Pulling backwards, using her front hooves to latch on to back, she flapped her wings to turn him over. At first, the snow refused to release it's quarry, but with a little more effort, he rolled over.

After releasing his mane, and getting rid of the taste of mane by spitting a few times, Dash eyed him carefully, noting any movements.

She wanted to ask him a fair few questions. More than a few. But they could wait.

"How long have you been out here, John?" She whispered, pressing her hoof against his heaving chest. His breathing was slow, but shallow, his torso rising and falling barely a millimetre each time. There was an occasional shudder, as if he was shivering, but his skin was incredibly hot to the touch. She could swear she even saw beads of sweat glistening on his forehead, plastering his mane down. But it was probably the snow.

She lifted her hoof off, and used it to tilt his head to the side. It moved without much effort.

As soon as it rolled, a thin stream of smoke wormed it's way out of his mouth, dissipating swiftly in the breeze nipping at her coat. The very sight made a shiver go down her spine.

_What in the hay was that!? Did it get him?_

Then, it all clicked for her. The pounding outside the shield, the flicker of the barrier and the screams earlier. But, if that was the case, why wasn't he allowed back in? Twilight had given them a lengthy lecture on the train here on protection spells; they only blocked certain types of magical beings or spells. Some could be altered to do so much more, like the one here, but John should have been able to just walk back in without that... _thing_... laying a hoof on him.

_Could it all be related? How come we find John here, when the Kingdom had reappeared only a while ago? Did he make it come back?_

A groan of audible agony escaped John's lips, prompting Rainbow Dash to panic slightly. She had to do something, but what exactly? By the time another moan reached her ears, she was already dragging him back to the Gateway by his tail. He weighed quite a bit, causing a sheen of perspiration to appear on her own forehead, but she kept pulling; watching him closely with stoic eagle-eyed determination.

As she passed through the shield backwards, tail still firmly grasped by her molars, she noticed something. He was now able to go through. Finally towing him all the way through, a familiar flutter in her heart began to arise as she gazed upon him, and she spat out the strands of his azure tail, looking away with heated, reddened cheeks. After regaining her composure, she turned back to him, only to falter immediately.

**/br/**

Pain. Mind boggling, soul destroying pain.

That was all John felt.

He felt it worming around inside him, that cursed _magic_, wriggling it's way towards his own. He was trapped inside his own mind by the sheer terror of it, a cornered rabbit trembling before a fox. Fear was riveted to his very being. As he thrashed about mentally, screeching in pain and trepidation, he felt the black walls close in once again, but there was something different. Something new.

A path out. An escape route.

He took it, and felt the pain fade away.

Cracking an eyelid open slowly; the astonishingly bright daylight made his head ache, he found himself staring up into a clear, gorgeous blue sky. The sun's rays bore down on him lightly. Raising a hoof to shield his eyes, John slowly raised himself off the ground, feeling the blades of grass bend away from him as he shifted his weight. Once standing, details in front of him became sharp and vivid, after a few moments of wide-eyed bleariness.

He was in... Ponyville?

"The hell?" He muttered, gazing around in confusion.

A good few metres ahead of him was a tall oak tree, the highest branches of which were swathed in large browning leaves. As he fixed a curious stare upon it, he began to see various shapes of ponies nestled underneath in the shade, and lazing in the higher boughs, a few more, including a small filly size one.

Trotting towards them, occasionally glancing at the houses and assorted stores that surrounded the Park's exterior, John called out to them.

"Hey!"

He couldn't clearly see them; they were obscured by the shadow, so he stopped close by, not entirely trusting. As he did, one of the shapes moved out of the shadows, and into his vision. It was Twilight.

"Twi! How did I...?"

She sniffed disdainfully at him, turning her nose up. "Oh, so you're finally awake then?" She scoffed, sneering at him from where she sat.

John stopped dead in his tracks.

_What in the name of... Did I do something wrong?_

"Yeah... W-what happened?" He said, faltering slightly. He watched in confusion as Applejack appeared out of the darkness, without her signature stetson. Without it, she just didn't look the same.

"We had to carry you all the way back to Ponyville, that's what happened!" She returned, glaring at him. John blinked in surprise.

"I, ah...-"

"You destroyed the train and half the Empire!" Rarity's voice rang out from within, soon revealing her to the left of Twilight.

"Whu-?"

"You tried to kill us!" A very, un-Pinkie-like shout came next, cutting him off.

_Did I...Turn...? No..._

Something hard collided heavily with his cheek, throwing him roughly to the side. When he could see straight again, he found himself staring at Fluttershy.

"You're just a big bully!"

_Huh? No, no, I swear! I have no idea what you're talking about!_

"But I-"

"Dad... why did you hurt all those ponies?"

John felt tears spring to his eyes as a pit opened up in the depths of his stomach, dragging his heart down as Hope spoke, staring at him with wide, confused eyes from a tree branch.

"I..." He couldn't even bring himself to answer. He was only just stopping himself from bursting into tears, to break down to pathetic sobs in front of them. Eyes darting between each one, he searched frantically for any indication that it was just a horrible, horrible prank. That they were in Ponyville, and everypony was all right. That nothing had happened.

"You hurt me, John..." The whisper came from his side, and he turned his head to face Rainbow Dash. He tried to say something, anything, but he couldn't. He just...couldn't: his heart was pounding, his mouth was seemingly frozen, and his brain kept telling him something was wrong. But, yet, the atmosphere of the situation crushed down on him viciously.

_They... They're right... I turned in the Empire, and..._

He didn't remember anything. That made it even worse, and he cried out in pain and horror, curling into a ball and rocking back and forth, hiding behind his tail and mane. He had been afraid of this happening.

"This is why I tried to kill Discord like I did. To avoid all _this_." He hoarsely gasped, feeling small teardrops soak into his tail. He choked and he stuttered, attempting to speak but getting stuck on his words. "Why? _Why?!_" He spluttered, heavy splashes of warm saltwater hitting the ground below, leaving silvery trails of dampness.

"Hah! Look at you! You're a big baby!" He heard Dash jeer, and he shivered, curling even tighter. A sharp blow smashed into his ribs, and he became breathless again, gasping like a fish out of it's element. It was just too much to absorb. Another blow came, this time hitting his hindquarters, which thrust him forwards into another stinging punch. As he tried to shy away from the limb, he dimly remembered something.

It had been buried deep down in the darkest abyss he could have possibly created, filed away forever, never to be spoken of again. The very thought of it made him bare his teeth, his heart race and his limbs twitch in unfathomable fury. It had been his lowest hour; the one point in his life, his human one anyway, that he had truly come to despise with every single fibre of his being.

"No wonder Hope doesn't want you as a father!"

Another blow, harder, struck him in the gut, and he roared out in frenzied pain. He burst out of the ball with a scream of angered frustration, rending the very earth beneath him into small chunks of flying sod and mud; needles of grass spiraling down from flight. His eyes shot open, revealing murky yellow and bloody crimson to the world. He planted his hooves either side of him with heavy thuds. With a pant of exhilaration, he snarled, baring dagger-sharp, knife-pointed teeth...

**/br/**

Upon turning around, Rainbow Dash found John awake, staring wordlessly upwards. With a concerned frown, she returned to his side, staring down at him in worried confusion.

"Rainbow Dash!"

She turned to meet whoever had called her name; her friends, and gestured them over with a grantic wave of her hoof.

"Something's wrong with him!"

They doubled their pace.

Below Dash, John's eyes were glowing a startling green, casting out a sickly light that illuminated her coat. He was occasionally twitching, his ruby irises blankly gazing out into space. As she watched, his mouth began to twist into a faint snarl: the lip curling against his bared teeth and a deep intake of breath drawing away all moisture, giving him a much more sinister look.

Sliding to a halt, Twilight peered into his eyes, curious-but wary-of his predicament.

"What happened?" She asked hurriedly, eyebrows slanted down as she looked up.

"John was outside the shield!"

"He was outside?!" Applejack said, eyebrows raised.

"Yeah, I think he fought that... that thing!"

John's lips moved, but whatever he said was drowned out by the wind to everypony but Twilight. Her ears perked up, and she asked, "John! Can you hear me?", but got no answer. Dash glanced back towards the shield, and almost at the same time, there was an audible growl from the grey pegasus.

"Girls..." Rarity warned, but they paid her warning no heed; crowding closer to the downed pegasus.

"John? Can you hear us?" Fluttershy quietly poked him in the side, a wholly different side to her emerging as she dug her hoof in. After all, when caring for the odd reluctant woodland creature, she had to be assertive and occasionally ruthless, particulary when one was in danger. There were light traces of the meeker side of Fluttershy reflected in her eyes, but that was where it stopped. She was going to find out what was wrong.

This made John whimper slightly, as if in pain. Retracting her hoof, she slowly looked up to Twilight and Rainbow Dash, concern etched into her butter-yellow face.

"He's hurt. We need to get him back to the palace."

The duo nodded, but an orange hoof held them back. Applejack shook her head, saying "Jus' wait," and frowned at Rarity. She noticed Applejack's stare, and nodded in sagely wisdom; walking round to his head carefully without the slighest bit of apprehension whatsoever. Something caught her eagle-eyed attentiveness: a small patch of darker fur near to his heart, barely noticable against their shadows. To her alarm, it was spreading rapidly outwards, like a wave of pure, unrestrained evil.

She jumped back quickly, her elegantly crafted tail brushing gently against his flank, purely by accident.

Another rumble came from deep within his throat, louder, more threatening.

"Rarity!" Dash hissed, waving her away with a hoof, protectively standing over John.

"Sorry!" She replied in a soft tone, looking slightly abashed, but still worried for their safety.

Unknown to them, Pinkie, curiously not wearing her jester costume, had somehow appeared beside Rainbow with a single wraith-like movement and was now prodding John's unmarked right flank with apparent curiousity.

"Hey, girls! He feels all tingly! Look!"

"Pinkie! Don't!"

As her hoof made contact with the unblemished fur, a spark erupted from the depths of his grey coat, accompanied by a warning crackle of electricity. Swiftly removing her hoof, Pinkie retreated backwards, watching with piqued interest as jagged spikes of blindingly bright blue light began to appear around his body, laying close to his stormcloud-grey coat. The body hissed in protest, and the green glow was shut away from the world by a pair of eyelids, clenching down in agony.

"Move!" Applejack cried out, stumbling backwards over her own hooves in a panic. But it was too late.

An unearthly roar of unbound fury and torment ripped itself from John's mouth, the arcing lightning around his body escaping in a less than a millisecond. He leapt to his hooves as the ground disappeared in an explosion of colour; a fireball throwing colossal amounts of grass and dirt up into the air with a thundering boom of godlike proportions.

Sent sprawling, the Mane Six could only cover their eyes from the flickering flames, spread thin by the detonation.

As the dust cleared and the flames extinguished themselves, there were two unbelievably vast thuds in the slience that ensued. A sharp, almost soundless scream from Fluttershy rang in John's ears; his eyes snapped open to glare at the pegasus through the smoke. He bared his razor-sharp teeth and snarled. The cords in his neck stood out like rope against his skin.

Splinters of rock and crystal littered the ground, the odd one speared in the ground like a javelin. Clusters of small, midnight-black crystals hidden in shadow expanded outwards from his hooves, tremoring as they thrust themselves from the bowels of their earthern prisons.

The Elements of Harmony could only watch in justified horror as John's eyes began to give of a foul purple smoke, twisting around his mane in the breeze. His pupils were pinpricks of red against golden-yellow, piercing through to their very souls.

"John! No!" Dash yelled, and she darted forward with a flap of her wings, wrapping her hooves around his neck loosely as she landed next to him. The effect on John was not clear to begin with; but soon, his eyes stopped their malicious yellow glowing, becoming a startling white in contrast to his coat.

Rainbow nuzzled his neck gently, still hugging him in place.

"Come on John... it's all right..." She whispered, and the purple smoke dissipated into the air, and stopped flowing over her skin. It had felt unnatural, but she didn't dare move.

Soon releasing the hug, Dash stepped back slightly, and watched as John let out a breath he wasn't aware he had been holding, and sighed. He licked his lips; they were horribly dry, revealing now normal teeth. His coat lightened, and he turned to the group, confused.

**/br/**

They were picking themselves up of the ground, and John groggily moved to help them up, silently working as he pondered his thoughts.

_What in the... but I...? I was... in Ponyville. How did I...?_

_**It was Sombra. **_Discord's melodious voice, rich and comforting, spoke into his mind. It provided him with a little comfort, but he remained stoically serious.

_What was that?_

_**It was a form of Chaos magic, one that hasn't been seen on Equestria for at least a thousand years, if not more.**_

He shifted his weight to lift Fluttershy from the ground, sensing her lean slightly on him as she wobbled on her hooves. She smiled in thanks, but avoided his eyes. He didn't say anything, but nodded quickly, moving to help up Rarity, as Twilight and Applejack were now up; due to Dash's help.

_What was it?_

_**If you were to ask Twilight about the schools of Magic, she would tell you that there were five schools. For each one, there is an inverse in the Chaos side. Sombra used a form of Chaotic Illusion; a fear spell to you and I.**_

John understood, at least a little. He would ask Twilight, hay, even Rarity, about the schools of magic; it would help their-hopefully, he chastised himself-friendly relationships, even if it was only by a little amount.

_What's the catch?_

_**I was waiting for that.**_

_**To avoid any problems in the near future, I'll tell you. But you can't tell anypony else, especially NOT Celestia or Luna. Not even Rainbow Dash can know, at least for now.**_

_Okay. Deal._

John glanced around, they were now talking amongst themselves quietly, sneaking the occasional glance at him with suspicious eyes. Rolling his own pair, but accepting their silent reasoning, he waited for Discord to start his explanation with mild curiousity, and around three times the amount of trepidation he should be feeling.

_**Quite simply, there are...**_

**What? You think I'd tell you just like that?**

**You'll just have to wait, won't you? XD**

**By the way, I would like a pre-reader. I'm positive there are mistakes in this chapter; if there are, I'll never see them. Stupid brain finishing the sentences and all that jazz.**

**See ya'll whenever.**


	5. Unfortunately, not Chapter 5 - UPDATE -

I thought I'd write a quick update chapter, to let y'all know what's been going down.

Now, I wanted to thank you guys for your support during TTOASC, and now, Magic. When I began writing, it was for two reasons.

One: I was as bored as hell.

Two: My creative writing skills were about as useful as a chocolate fireguard (I love that expression).

From September 28th 2012, all the way to June 2nd, my creative writing improved drastically. if you've read the first chapters of TTOASC, you'll know what I mean when I say that.

Now, I want to tell you what that resulted in. With the practice I got from ten months of writing on this site, I boosted my national levels by an amazing margin. Just so as you know, I'm British, so this may mean toss all to those in the USA. In September, at the start of Year 9, I was a level 6a in English, with an expected outcome of 7b at the end of Year 9. Now, I'm an EP at the end of Year 9. My fellow Brits may know what that means; I'm not sure though, and I need to explain it anyway: EP is literally an A star at the end of my English iGSCE.

And I owe my success to those who guided me. You guys.

Now, part two of my update.

I keep having these crazy-awesome ideas for chapters, but I don't want to put them in because they're either so unbelievably stupid or they won't be canon whatsoever. If you want, following in the footsteps of other authors, I'll write and post these chapters with the canon ones, so you can read them.

Whilst writing Chapter 5, I came across a problem.

Quite basically, writer's block for Chapter 5 has bitched-slapped me across the face, and I'm still recovering. So, what I might do in the meantime is this: start to write another story. I probably won't, but I thought I'd ask for advice. What do you think I should do? It's really, if anything, a lack of inspiration for the story. I've exhausted every idea I had. I have a few for future chapters, but I'm constantly adapting/changing the storyline.

For instance, in a future chapter, I planned on having John leave Ponyville in the middle of the night, not knowing where he's gonna go or what he's gonna do. This is in relation to the current storyline, by the way. I probably should have wrote something like ***SPOILER ALERT*** at the start of this paragraph. Oh well.

So, anyway, this then contrasted with a particularly tear-jerking chapter (for me, anyway), based around John's past and being shunned by the Six, that was inspired by Aviator's song "Friendship". So I stopped. Now, I don't really know what to do. Then there was this idea for a PROPER Canterlot prison break after the Mane Six and John are imprisoned, based upon Imagine Dragon's "Radioactive". I started to write, and then lost the drive to finish it. See what I mean?

So yeah, that's what's been going down in the life of Daz.

Expect an update before the end of the month, whether it be Chapter 5, or I skip a battle scene and just jump straight back to Ponyville.

'Till then, guys.


	6. Chapter 5 - Albeit very short

**Magic, Chapter 5, Uhm...**

"Are you alright?" John asked, eyes flickering between all six ponies as he stood, somewhat bashfully. His tone was hesitant. Regardless of the confusion he was suffering from, he still managed to think coherently, even after Discord was shoved aside randomly and the pain had seeped in. In mid-sentence, the Spirit just... vanished. With all suspicions aimed towards Sombra, John simply filed the problem away for later; bigger things mattered.

"The better question would be to ask if _you _were okay, darling." Rarity said, raising an eyebrow. Genuine concern filled her tone, and her expression betrayed no hidden emotion. At her prompt, the girls all leaned in slightly, with similar expressions.

"I... I don't know." He said with as much honesty as he could muster into a sentence. As he stood, he swayed slightly with the wind. The girls didn't miss the sign. Without a word, Dash used her body weight to help prop him up, and he smiled gratefully at her. "How'd you find me?"

"I heard something outside Princess Cadence's spell, so I went and looked. I dunno what you were doing out there, but..." Dash shrugged under his weight.

"I felt an unnaturally huge amount of magic outside the shield, so I came to investigate. It meant a detour, but it was seriously big. I met everypony at the bottom of the steps; apparently Pinkie felt "a disturbance in the force", and was just about to go and look." Twilight frowned at him. Pinkie just gave him a grin.

"But seriously, why were you out there?" Dash asked, turning her head so that it was less than a few inches away.

"No other choice. Sombra broke through the shield." He replied, grimacing as if in pain. In truth, he was. Constant spikes of pain were rocketing through his resolve.

"So ya fought 'im?" He nodded. Applejack gave him an expression of disbelief, before shaking her head. "That could be one o' tha most stupid things ah have ever heard, sugarcube."

He groaned; there was a particularly painful jab at his mind, before he expressed his agreement.

Fluttershy placed a tentative hoof on his forehead, before retracting it. "You have a very high temperature...John." She squeaked, hiding ever-so-slightly behind her mane.

He sighed. "I guess the cat's out of the bag, isn't it?"

"A horrid expression to use, darling, but yes, it is." Rarity didn't smile, but gave him a concerned frown.

"I'll explain later. Right now, you girls need to...ugh... do whatever the hell it was that you were doing. I need to speak with Princess Cadence and Shining Armour."

**/br/**

Even before he saw the fatigue etched into Cadence's face, John could feel the lack of life in the air. It was a startling contrast after seeing what was going on outside.

Fluttershy had escorted him back, and had then returned to the fair, saying something about Rainbow Dash and a jousting competition. If that was the case, he feared for Dash's competitors. Twilight was running around the castle, searching relentlessly for a "Crystal Heart". Applejack was minding the stalls with Rarity and Pinkie Pie, trying to keep the crystal ponies occupied whilst Twilight looked high and low for the heart.

They had left him alone to speak with Cadence and Shining Armour, which he was silently thankful for. They didn't need to know that Sombra was going to attack again, and that he had already breached the Empire's magical barrier.

He was now standing, facing the duo, on the balcony.

Deep down, John had an unexplainable hatred of balconies.

"I'm sorry to burst in like this, Princess, but there's something you need to know." He announced, shakily standing to attention as Shining Armour inspected him with suspicion. His horn, John noticed, was coated in the same obsidian crystals that Sombra had summoned. Slowly, Cadence turned around, a small, weak smile upon her lips. Her horn was lit up with her blue aura, but it kept flickering; her face contorted by tiredness.

"How can we be of assistance, John? That is your name, right?" Cadence asked, her voice cracking. Shining Armour remained somewhat impassive, his gaze indifferent to the pegasus.

John hastily nodded, trotting closer to them. "King Sombra has breached the outer defenses around the Kingdom. We have less than an hour to prepare."

Cadence looked him over, and he got the feeling that she didn't miss a detail, least of all the worry in his eyes.

"There's something you're not telling us, isn't there, John?" She said quietly.

"Sombra has done something to me, possibly similar to what happened to Shining Armour. We're not sure, but I think-" he groaned in pain as another violent stab at his mind tore his thoughts asunder. Eyelids fluttering in pain, he swayed on the spot, stumbling forward slightly. Shining Armour edged forwards, catching him.

The pain eased off, and John gasped. Cadence shook her head and said: "You attacked him." John gave a slight, thin-lipped grin in return.

Shining Armour bit the inside of his cheek. "Whatever he's done, you need to see a doctor." He asserted, motioning with a hoof. "I'll call one up. You just stay here." With that, he left them alone, kissing Cadence on the cheek as he passed.

John faltered, and then forced himself forward, so that he was standing by the lip of the balcony. Now, he could see everything. He would see Sombra coming. Later. Closing his eyes, he anticpated another jolt of agony, even stronger, jumping across his brain like electricity. He heard the clop of hooves next to him.

"John. In all seriousness now, do you realise what you now are?" Cadence's tone was soft.

"I do. And I don't want to tell them. Does Twilight know?" He inquired, unmoving.

"No. Aunt Luna and I know, however. It isn't easy to conceal a Spirit from another."

"Let me guess: you're the Spirit of Love? Is there a Spirit of Love?"

"Yes, there is, and yes, I am."

"Great." He exhaled heavily as the most agonising burst so far erupted like a volcano, and fell backwards onto the floor, blackness rushing in to claim him once again.

**Now. I am so, so, so sorry for the lack of updates. My laptop's screen ****MELTED****, and I lost quite a lot of stuff. This is just about what I've been able to do.**

**But aaaanyway. I'm alive! But most of you knew that.**

**Ah, but something's something. I'm attempting to get a schedule together, so... y'know. Bear with me.**

**Also, about the darkness and passing out and whatnot. That links into shiz.**

**See y'all laters.**


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